Wanderlust
by Alei-Frozen-Ruby
Summary: Ichigo lives under the tight reign of an overprotective father who never lets her travel anywhere. But when a tansfer student who's seen the world comes to town, Ichigo is powerfully seized by wanderlust, and guess who helps her escape her mundane reality
1. Whatever

**Whenever Wherever**

Ichigo Momomiya stood on the threshold. She twisted her hands nervously. The last time she'd asked her father rejected her soundly. The time before that he'd brushed her off. But this time would be different, she decided. He'd see things her way and let her do it. He had to. Ichigo stopped twisting her hands and let them hang at her sides. She crossed the threshold to the den, where her father was reading a thick book of some kind or another.

Ichigo walked behind her father and placed her arms around him in a gentle hug. "Hello Father dearest," Ichigo said sweetly. Her father sighed. "What do you want this time?" He asked. "Oh, nothing much," Ichigo said lightly. Her father looked up at her and resignedly asked, "Is this about what I think it is?" "Maybe, it depends on what you're thinking," Ichigo replied. "Well, I might as well know what you want sooner than later," Her father replied with a mock sigh.

"Father, I'd like to travel out of the country," Ichigo requested. Her father laughed heartily and replied, "But where would you go?" Ichigo looked off into the distance and seemed unfocused on the present as she replied, "Somewhere. Anywhere. I long to leave Tokyo and travel elsewhere. I want to see the world while I'm young enough to enjoy it."

Her father shook his head. "No. I have said no before and I will say it again. You will not travel as long as you live in my house. It's a dangerous world out there for young girls such as you," Her father said as he picked up the book again. "Oh but father, please. I've never wanted anything more! I only want to travel, to see the world! And it's not as though we do not have the money for it; your business has made us rich as kings," Ichigo pleaded. Her father shook his head again. "It's much too dangerous for a young teenage girl out there to be traveling alone," Her father replied in a tone which said, 'and that is the _end _of this.' Ichigo fumed and stormed out of the room.

She stomped up the stairs to her room and slammed the door, making sure a loud bang resounded throughout the house. She sat on her floor amidst her homework, glaring at the thick books and scattered papers. Hot tears threatened to run down her cheeks. But she held them back. No sense in letting them fall if no one was there to appreciate them. So Ichigo sat amidst her homework, glaring at nothing in particular and thinking of many plans to escape or to get revenge on her father.

Ichigo sat brooding in her room when her mother called her down to dinner. "I don't want any!" Ichigo yelled back. Ichigo wrathfully picked up a pencil and opened up her geometry book. She glared at the problems and scribbled down the answers. Her mother called her again to welcome a house guest. "I'm not coming down!" Ichigo yelled. She opened her literature book and glared at the numerous and pointless questions. When she finished scribbling the answers for those, Ichigo did feel somewhat calmer.

Ichigo quietly opened her door and silently stalked down the stairs. She made her way through the kitchen and pilfered a dinner roll from the bag on the counter before heading to the den and turning on the stereo. Ichigo sat down on the couch munching on her dinner roll as her music played. The tunes of rock and roll came on and Ichigo slowly relaxed.

Through heavy metal, rock and roll, and Mozart Ichigo listened, quietly munching on her dinner roll. Ichigo was feeling rather drowsy as the Beach Boys came on and thought about heading up to bed and sleeping. She held the remote up and was just about to push the power button when a voice from behind her said, "But I like this song."

Ichigo jumped, surprised and turned around. A light skinned boy with green hair stood behind her. "Who're you?" Ichigo asked. The boy laughed. He couldn't be much older than her, if he was indeed older. "Didn't they tell you?" He asked. Ichigo shook her head. "They never tell me about these kinds of things," She pouted slightly and closed her eyes, listening to the music. "I'm your great aunt's ex-roommate's grandson, the houseguest who's going to be staying here for a few days," The boy replied. "Oh. You. And I was asking for a name," Ichigo prompted. "Oh. Sorry. My name is Kisshu," The boy replied. "And I think you're kind of cute," he replied, brushing her cheek with his fingers. Ichigo blushed and he withdrew his hand.

"So where are you from?" Ichigo asked. "I'm from across the ocean, from England," He replied. Ichigo nodded. "The little island?" She asked. "It's bigger when you're on it," He replied, making a half hearted attempt to defend his 'little island.' Ichigo nodded. "What's it like over there?" She asked. Kisshu opened his mouth to reply when her stomach growled.

Kisshu smiled. "Guess you're a little hungry," He commented. Ichigo nodded. "I never had any dinner," she confessed. "I'm going to go get something to eat," Ichigo continued. Kisshu nodded. "Mind if I come along?" He asked. "Sure," Ichigo gave permission as she got up from the couch. The pair walked out the door and into the adjoining dining room and from there to the kitchen.

Ichigo pulled out a plate from the cupboard and set it on the counter. She turned around to the fridge and pulled out some leftover taco meat in a Tupperware container, a bag of graded cheese (which she stacked on top of the leftover taco meat), and a small packet of lettuce. She closed the fridge door with her foot and laid the ingredients on the counter beside her plate. "What're you making?" Kisshu asked, looking on with interest. "It's an American meal my aunt gave us. She calls it Taco Salad," Ichigo replied. "How did she find out about it?" Kisshu asked. "She likes to travel and sometimes she brings back recipes," Ichigo elaborated. Kisshu nodded as Ichigo scooped some of the taco meat onto the plate.

She looked around looking for the paper towels. "Do you see the paper towels?" She asked Kisshu upon not seeing them. "There they are," Kisshu pointed to a ledge above the stove. Ichigo reached up and her hand was barely able to grasp it. "Here, allow me," he said and reached up, grabbing the paper towels with ease. "Thanks," Ichigo said and took them from him. She pulled one off and laid it on top of the meat then put the meat in the microwave. Ichigo shut the microwave and set it for thirty seconds. "So do you usually eat this . . . taco salad?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo shook her head. "Nah, it's pretty new," She informed him. Kisshu nodded. The microwave beeped and Ichigo pulled out her meat. She set the plate on the counter and opened the bags of cheese and lettuce, pulling out some of both and setting them in neat piles next to the meat. Ichigo closed the bags and put them back in the fridge. "That is taco salad?" Kisshu asked, looking at it suspiciously. Ichigo shook her head. "Not yet," she replied and grabbed a rolled up bag of corn chips. She pulled some out and placed them in between the cheese and the lettuce. "Now it is," Ichigo said happily. She grabbed a fork from one of the drawers below the stove and headed back to the den.

She sat down on the couch and Kisshu stood behind her. "Here, sit beside me," Ichigo said, patting the cushion next to hers. Kisshu sat down next to her. "So what do you want to talk about?" Kisshu asked. "England," Ichigo decided. "What shall I tell you about England?" Kisshu asked. "Anything, everything," Ichigo vaguely replied as she used the fork to scoop some meat onto a corn chip using her fork and putting some cheese and lettuce on top of the meat. "Well, there are the cities and the countryside, which do you wish me to speak of?" Kisshu asked. "Start with the city," Ichigo decided. She put the chip with everything on it in her mouth as Kisshu began to speak.

"England sounds like a great place," Ichigo commented with vivacity. Her empty plate lay on the coffee table in front of the couch and she and Kisshu sat closely, facing each other. "Well, it's my home," Kisshu replied. "But how can you speak Japanese so well?" Ichigo asked. "Because my mother is Japanese and that's all she ever spoke to me. I know English from my father and school mates. She taught me to read and write in Japanese and to speak fluently and taught me the customs," Kisshu explained. "Well, I've got to go to bed right now. But I'd like you to know that you're not as bad as I thought you were," Ichigo replied as she stood. Kisshu nodded. "Where's the guest room?" He asked. "Next to mine. Come on up and I'll show you," Ichigo invited. Kisshu nodded and took the opportunity.

Ichigo and Kisshu picked up his luggage from the entrance hall and Ichigo led the way to the stairs. The two climbed up the staircase in silence. Ichigo walked down and past her room. She pushed open a cherry wood door to reveal a sparsely furnished room. "Well, here we are," Ichigo announced and set some of his luggage down by the bed. Kisshu nodded. She crossed the wooden floor to the door. "Arigatou, Ichigo," He thanked her. Ichigo paused at the threshold. "How do you know my name?" She asked. "Your parents told me," Kisshu replied. Ichigo nodded. "'Night Kisshu," Ichigo said and left the room. Ichigo shut the door behind her and walked over to the bathroom, thinking about what Kisshu had said and how he had treated her. It was nice she decided, very nice. She stripped and turned on the warm water before stepping into the shower.

Kisshu had changed into his pajamas and tossed his two duffel bags in a corner. He was sitting on the edge of the bed when a melody floated in from Ichigo's room. "Le lo lo le lo le . . . le lo lo le lo le . . ." Kisshu closed his eyes and listened to Ichigo's voice. "She's got good lungs," He murmured to himself. He shuffled himself under the quilt of the bed and laid his head on the pillow, listening to Ichigo's singing.

Kisshu woke up late the next day. He was in no rush when he got up and out of bed. Nor was he in a rush when he dressed and went down stairs. He wasn't in a rush when he ate breakfast. However, he paused when Mrs. Momomiya came in and asked, "Kisshu, aren't you supposed to be in school?" "There is school today?" Kisshu asked. Mrs. Momomiya nodded. Kisshu jumped up, knocking over his chair in the process, and pounded up the stairs for his backpack. Since he hadn't fully moved in, he was able to find it with ease. He grabbed it and rushed down the stairs, slipping down the last two and landing on his butt. He winced, but sprang back up and rushed for the door where he had left his shoes. He slipped one on, but accidentally knocked the other across the floor and so he ran after it. He slipped that one on and flung open the door. "See 'ya later Mrs. Momomiya!" He called and rushed out, slamming the door behind him. "But Kisshu! Do you know—" Mrs. Momomiya stopped when he slammed the door. She'd thought that he just might want to know where the school was. Kisshu sheepishly poked his head back in a few moments later. "Um . . . where is the school?" He asked.

Ichigo sat in her first period class with Minto. They were passing notes about Ichigo's new "house guest." **Is he hot? **Minto wrote and passed to Ichigo. **On a scale of 1-10 he's a 9. **Ichigo slipped the note to Minto. Minto's reply came over Ichigo's shoulder. **That's a first. Where is he? **Minto had written. Ichigo smiled and wrote, **I think he's still at home. **Ichigo looked up at the professor before slipping the note back. Minto read it and Ichigo wrote down some notes the professor had written on the board while Minto wrote her reply. She lightly tapped the back of Ichigo's chair with her foot and Ichigo put her hand back for the note. **Isn't he supposed to be here? **Ichigo wore a slightly puzzled expression. **I thought he was, but he was still sleeping when I left. **Ichigo slipped the note onto the corner of Minto's desk and then proceeded to copy more notes the professor had written on the board. Minto had just passed the note back to Ichigo when they noticed someone coming in. He had lush green hair and was dressed in a rumpled uniform . . . **That's him. **

Ichigo and Minto watched Kisshu without trying to look like they were watching him (which is much harder and less successful than you'd think). Finally the bell rang. Ichigo and Minto casually walked up to him as he got ready to walk out the door. "Hey Kisshu, where've you been?" Ichigo asked. "I over slept," Kisshu replied as he walked toward the door. Ichigo and Minto followed. "Kisshu, do you even know where you're going?" Ichigo asked. "No, not really. However I have a very good sense of direction, so you don't need to play tour guide," Kisshu said. "Unless of course you're actually worried about me," Kisshu teased, leaning in toward Ichigo. Ichigo was offended at this and slightly embarrassed. "I couldn't care less about you," She replied and pushed around him, stalking into the hallway.

Minto and Kisshu hurried after Ichigo. "Aww . . .Ichigo, I didn't mean to make you mad," Kisshu pleaded. Ichigo sighed. "It's ok," she replied and turned to face him. "But you better not tick me off again," She threatened, waving her finger in his face. "You're cute when you're mad," Kisshu responded after a second. "Flattery will not work next time," Ichigo told him. "But you are!" Kisshu said again as he followed Ichigo down the hallway. "Where's your next class?" Ichigo asked, suddenly changing the subject. Kisshu pulled out a folded and slightly crumpled paper and handed it to Ichigo. Ichigo's forehead creased and she showed the paper to Minto who burst out laughing. "What's so funny?!" Kisshu demanded. "You have all the same classes as Ichigo," Minto said between fits of laughter as she surrendered the class list to Kisshu.

Ichigo walked into her next class and sat near the middle of the room. Kisshu sat down next to her. "So what exactly is this class?" Kisshu asked. "This is science," Ichigo replied with a sigh. One of her least favorite classes, now to be taken with a most annoying someone. The room slowly filled up and Ichigo caught murmurings of conversations, circulating mainly around the "new kid." Retasu, Ichigo's other best friend, came and sat down on Ichigo's other side. "Hey Ichigo. How was the weekend?" Retasu asked. Ichigo shrugged. "A new member has been added to my house," Ichigo replied. "Really? You're parents finally adopted that little girl from India?" Retasu asked. "No! They still haven't decided about that. But he has joined my house," Ichigo said pointing to Kisshu. Retasu looked at him and studied him for a minute. "Hi?" Kisshu offered.


	2. Waiting

"Stand up," Retasu ordered him. Kisshu did as told and Retasu walked a full circle around him, inspecting the new comer. Apparently satisfied with Kisshu, she smiled beautifully and held out her hand to him. "I'm Midorikawa Retasu," She introduced herself. Kisshu tentatively took her hand and shook it. "I'm Kisshu," He said carefully, eyeing the green haired girl warily. "Kisshu, it's okay. She's a friend," Ichigo said with a laugh. Kisshu nodded, not quite ready to trust this girl. The teacher came in and the class stood in respect, then sat back down and class went on.

After science Ichigo met with her friends for lunch. Kisshu walked with them on the side away from Retasu, still slightly fearful of the green girl. "So how long is lunch?" Kisshu asked. "About an hour," Ichigo replied. Kisshu nodded. Ichigo and her friends sat down on the grass in the shade of one of the many trees and unpacked her lunch. "Don't those uniforms make it hard to sit?" Kisshu asked, noticing the short skirts. "Not if you do it right," Minto replied. Kisshu nodded and took out his own lunch.

After the last bell rang Kisshu found Ichigo at the front of the school. "C'mon. Let's go home," Ichigo said to him and started walking. "So those are your friends?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo nodded. "Two in a million," She replied. "I see," Kisshu commented. "Is Retasu always that way with new comers?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo shook her head. "Nah. Usually she's more protective of me, but I warned her that we'd be having an exchange student," Ichigo replied non-chalantly. The pair walked on in moderate silence for a while.

"Have you been anywhere else besides England?" Ichigo finally broke the ice. Kisshu stopped watching his feet and looked up at her. "Yeah, tons of places," He replied. "Will you tell me about them?" Ichigo asked. "Sure. Which ones do you wanna know about?" Kisshu asked. "All of them. Tell me everything about all of them," Ichigo replied dreamily. "Ok, well, I guess I'll start with the US," Kisshu commented. "My aunt's been there. Tell me about California. She says its summer there all year long!" Ichigo responded. Kisshu nodded and told her all about the beaches and the sunshine and everything. Ichigo listened with glistening eyes and soaked everything in, interrupting every now and then to ask a question.

The pair reached Ichigo's house and walked upstairs. Ichigo went to her room and Kisshu followed. Ichigo sat down in the middle of the floor and gestured for Kisshu to do the same as he continued painting a picture of the outside world for Ichigo. It was four p.m. before Mrs. Momomiya got home and told the two teens to get to their homework and only an hour after that did Ichigo reluctantly start on her homework.

Kisshu stayed in her room to do his homework mainly because he needed help reading some of the kanji. "But doesn't that also mean 'sing'?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo shook her head. "Only if you add this over here," Ichigo said and made a mark on his homework. Both worked in silence for a minute. "Oh, Ichigo, I was listening to you sing the other night and I was wondering if you took lessons," Kisshu remarked. Ichigo looked up at him. "Oh, you heard me?" She asked as a faint blush rose in her cheeks. Kisshu felt his heart do a little flip. "Yeah, you were great," Kisshu replied. "Thanks. I don't take any lessons though," Ichigo admitted. "Well why don't you take some? You could be really good," Kisshu commented. Ichigo quickly turned back to her homework. "Dad won't let me. He says that he hates the teachers here and that the nearest one he'd let me go to is out of the city, but he doesn't let me travel. He's paranoid that some vulgar troll will magically appear and carry me off, never to be seen again," Ichigo replied agitatedly.

The rest of the night passed in silence. Ichigo's mother brought their dinner up to Ichigo's room and smiled to see them working so hard in silence. Hardly a peep all afternoon. Ichigo definitely seemed to have had a change of heart about the exchange student. Sakura closed the door as gently as she could and walked back down. She reported the strange phenomenon of Ichigo actually doing homework with another being present at the same time. Ichigo's father nodded approvingly. That girl was finally learning something about responsibility.

"Hey Kisshu, remember that new professor at school?" Ichigo asked as she was munching on an egg roll. The green haired one nodded. "Yup. He was going on about some sort of party, wasn't he?" Kisshu asked. "Yeah, and I just remembered what kind of party it was," She remarked. Kisshu looked up from his work. "Would you care to enlighten me?" He asked. "He was saying that Japan's famous for its hook-up parties, so we should have one next class period. He was gonna rent out a room and everything but I'm not sure that he knows what a hook-up party is. He's a foreigner after all," Ichigo enlightened Kisshu and looked up from her work. "Do you know what a hook-up party is?" She asked. Kisshu nodded affirmative although he had no idea what it was. "Good," Ichigo replied and went back to her work. "'Cuz you better not get any funny ideas about hitting on me or my friends," She continued. Kisshu shrugged off the warning and went back to what he was doing. And besides, whatever it was, it could be that bad.

The next day Ichigo's classes seemed to drag on by. She picked up on a rumor that was going around about her and Kisshu dating or some dung pile like that. Ichigo didn't really care. What she did was her own affair. However, what she was somewhat worried about was the upcoming hook-up party during eighth period. Thank goodness it was the last period of the day. But then again, all the more reason to be worried about it because her parents would worry if she stayed out too long. So Ichigo stood in front of her eighth period door. Deciding if she wanted to go in when the professor came up behind her. "Door locked?" He asked. "Sorry about that," He apologized as he slid the key in with a click and unlocked the door. Well, no choice now, too late to run away and skip class. Ichigo walked in. Not too late to feign sickness though. A stomach ache or migraine might work . . . The rest of the student body participating in that particular class began to trickle in, along with nervous murmurs relating to the party. Too late to feign sickness.

Some students that the teacher had recruited were helping to set up low tables, pillows, and food around the classroom. Also littered liberally across the tables amongst the food were fresh bottles of sake (a Japanese alcoholic beverage). What the heck was this teacher doing with sake? The teacher, on the other side of the room, said something like a greeting and instantly began wandering amongst the girls. A decidedly cross mood descended upon Ichigo and she instantly became suspicious of everything the teacher did. She nonchalantly walked over to a group of boys clustered in the corner and hid behind them. So he _did _know what a hook-up party was, the baka. The teacher passed by the cluster of boy with disinterest, not spotting Ichigo.

The magenta haired teen slowly made her way toward the door. Perhaps she could escape this social fiasco. She'd tell everyone she came down with some sort of ache and that she had to leave part way through. Yeah, that would the excuse. As she dodged between groups of people, most of them guys and making it a point not to notice her, she spotted Kisshu. He looked abandoned and somewhat forlorn. Being somewhat sympathetic and not entirely selfish, Ichigo altered her course and went toward Kisshu. So far, so good. The teacher hadn't noticed her at all, and, amazingly, neither had anybody else. _Does anybody else care? _Ichigo lightly wondered, but then pushed the question out of her mind.

She came up behind Kisshu and lightly tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped slightly and then turned around. "Oh, it's you," He said with relief. "What do you mean 'oh, it's you'?! Aren't you pleased to see me? Never mind, let's ditch this place," Ichigo said and turned toward the door. "Ditch?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo nodded. "You'll pretend to have a headache and I'll escort you out because you don't really know anybody else and I know where the office is," Ichigo explained and pulled him up next to her. "Act like your in pain of some sort," Ichigo whispered in his ear. Kisshu nodded. He grimaced and rubbed his forehead. Ichigo looked around for the teacher, and upon not seeing him, made a beeline for the door with Kisshu. Quite suddenly, a hand appeared on her shoulder and stopped her progress.

"And where are you going?" A drunk sounding and alcoholic smelling voice asked. Ichigo turned around. Baka teacher. "I'm escorting my friend to the nurse's office. His head's been bothering him all day, you see," Ichigo started. "Oh phooey. A little sake will take care of that," The teacher said and shoved an empty bottle at her. Ichigo took the bottle and handed it to Kisshu who groaned dramatically and shoved it away. The teacher took the bottle back.

"oh shilly me, is empty," he said. He dropped the bottle with a loud clink and grabbed another from a nearby table. "Here, you have shum," He said and suddenly grabbed Ichigo, shoving the burning liquid down her throat. Ichigo broke away and felt slightly confused. "Here, have anuzzer drink," The teacher said. Ichigo, her mind becoming somewhat foggy, took the bottle and drank it down. Kisshu tried to take the bottle away but Ichigo batted him back. "Go away, ish mine now," She grumbled and downed some more. The teacher took her by the shoulder and led her over to where he had gathered with a group of girls. "Sho, wassur name?" He asked. Ichigo laughed and leaned against him. "I'm Ishigo momiya," She replied. The teacher nodded. "Wanna play strip rock paper scissors with ush?" The teacher asked. "Wassat?" Ichigo asked him as they reached the group. One of the girl answered. "Is when you play rock paper shissors, but every time you lose you take off shum of yer cloths," the girl explained. "We jusht about to shtart," another said. The teacher leaned in toward Ichigo. "ish all of you againsht me. You do paper and I'll do shissors," The teacher whispered loudly. Ichigo, in her drunken state, nodded and took another swig of sake.

"Oh no you don't," Kisshu interrupted and took the bottle away from Ichigo. Ichigo turned toward him, glaring. Kisshu gave the bottle back, but began to steer her toward the door. Ichigo purred contentedly and downed some more of the alcoholic beverage. "You better thank me for this," Kisshu mumbled. At that point, Ichigo looked over at him. "Hey, you're hot. Do I know you?" She asked drunkenly. Kisshu colored slightly and looked over at her. "You must really be drunk," He commented and began moving quicker toward the door with her. "Shtop moving so fasht. Yer giving me a headache," Ichigo complained. Kisshu sighed. Almost to the door. Just another three feet to go. They reached the door and Ichigo stopped at the threshold. "Come on," Kisshu said and walked out. "I'm not leaving," Ichigo replied stubbornly. Kisshu suddenly swooped down and swept her off the floor, literally. He picked her up and carried her off down the hall.

Ichigo dangled her arms around his neck while clutching the half empty bottle of sake. "Am I yer princess now?" Ichigo asked. Kisshu looked down confusedly at her. "What?" He asked. "Yer carrying me off like da prince alwayz does to da princess," Ichigo explained. Kisshu shook his head in disbelief and walked on down the hallway. Quite suddenly, Ichigo pulled his head down and pressed her lips against his. Kisshu felt stars explode in his head and gently pulled away from Ichigo. "Wha- what was that?" He asked. "Da prince and da princess alwayz kish," Ichigo said by way of explanation.

Kisshu stopped at the girl's bathroom. Here was the dilemma. He heard a flushing sound from inside. He'd just ask whoever it was in there to dunk Ichigo's head in the water a couple times to sober her up. Yes. That's what he'd do. The door creaked open and lo and behold. Minto came out. She looked at them quizzically. "Are you two married or something?" She asked sarcastically. Kisshu set Ichigo down. "You're Ichigo's friend, right?" He asked. Minto nodded affirmative. "Then will you please take her in there and sober her up, she got drunk at the class party," Kisshu explained. Minto looked at Ichigo's flushed face and dazed expression before noticing the half empty bottle of sake. Minto wrestled the bottle from Ichigo and shoved it at Kisshu before hustling the drunken girl into the bathroom. Kisshu sighed. "The things I go through," He complained to no one in particular. "And just what is this stuff anyways?" He questioned as he raised the bottle to his lips.

When Ichigo came back out, with a splitting headache, but none the less sober, Kisshu was almost as drunk as she had been and the bottle of sake was empty. His face was flushed from alcohol. Unfortunately, neither Minto nor Ichigo picked up on this until Ichigo and Kisshu started walking down the hall again and Minto was gone. "Hey, don't I know you from shumwhere, prinshess?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo rubbed her forehead. "Kisshu, I don't have time for this. We need to find some way to get away from here," Ichigo said. "Well, lesh go back to da cashl," Kisshu suggested. Ichigo nodded. "What? No, we're going to my house," She replied and headed for the door. Kisshu came up behind her wrapped his arms around her waist. "Da prinsh loves his prinshess," Kisshu said and kissed Ichigo on the cheek. Ichigo, now grumpy beyond all reason, thunked him on the head and proceeded to drag him out of the school and crashed at her house.

When they woke up, Ichigo and Kisshu were curled up next to each other on Ichigo's bedroom floor. Ichigo woke up first. She shoved Kisshu's arm off of on top of her and stumbled down the stairs with the intent of getting some water. Luckily her mother was not yet home, unluckily, Minto was in the living room with Ichigo's backpack. Minto opened her mouth to speak, but Ichigo silenced her with her hand and walked into the kitchen. She splashed icy water on her face and down a glass of milk before going back into the living room. Ichigo sat down opposite Minto and leaned back in the chair.

"Can I talk now?" Minto asked. Ichigo grunted. "I'll take that as a yes. First of all, I grabbed your backpack and brought it home for you. That crazy teacher was rummaging through all the backpacks for some reason or other. Second, why were you drinking sake?" Minto asked. "The teacher had a hook up party. I decided to ditch class and was in the process of grabbing Kisshu and taking him with me when the teacher came up and shoved sake down my throat. I'm not sure what happened after that," Ichigo lied, after all the memories were a bit foggy. Sheesh, she'd told Kisshu he was hot. And kissed him besides. Best act like she couldn't remember. Yes, that would be the key. Fake amnesia.

"Kisshu carried you out of the classroom and down the hallway and I dunked your head in water until you were sober," Minto supplied. Ichigo nodded. "Great," Ichigo groaned sarcastically. "By the way, where is Kisshu now?" Minto asked. "I think he's on my bedroom floor," Ichigo answered. "I don't think I'll ask about that," Minto muttered to herself as she stood up. "Well, good luck cleaning up this mess, Ichigo. I shall see you tomorrow if your parents haven't killed you," Minto closed the conversation and walked out the door, closing it behind her. Ichigo sank deeper into the chair.

It was at that point that Kisshu chose to come bumbling down the stairs. He tripped on the last step and somehow managed to catch himself in an attempt not to go "splat" on the floor. "Hey Ichigo, where does your family keep the aspirin?" He asked after steadying himself on the railing. Ichigo pretended to be asleep. "Ichigo—no wait. Is she asleep?" Kisshu asked himself aloud. He walked over to the chair where Ichigo was pretending to sleep. "Faker," he mumbled to himself and wandered into the kitchen where he drank a painfully cold glass of ice water before splashing the rest on his face. He shook his head and dried his face with a towel. "Well, that's a little better. Now, to attend to the great pretender," Kisshu said to himself as he walked back into the living room and sat down on the couch Minto had been sitting on not moments before.

_**Let's see here, I could randomly poke her.**_

_Or you could leave her alone._

_**I could douse her in water and quickly run away before she was fully awake.**_

_She looks very comfy in that chair._

_**I could say all this aloud and play mind games with her.**_

_Are you sure you want to interrupt her sweet slumber?_

_**I could go up real close to her and shout something quite suddenly.**_

_What if she's actually sleeping?_

_**I could go up to her and kiss her.**_

_Now there's an idea._

_**But she'd get really mad at me.**_

_But you could pretend you were still drunk._

_**Nah. She already knows I'm not. I said something about that when I came down the stairs, remember, oh smart one?**_

_Hm . . . you could still kiss her. See what she does._

_**She'd slap me.**_

_But what if she kissed you back?_

****


	3. Wanting

Ichigo was pretending to sleep, listening to Kisshu doing things. She must've dozed off at one point because she suddenly found herself surrounded by blackness. Not the friendly almost blackness of your closing your eyes at night. Not the comforting blackness when you go to sleep in your bed and you feel entirely safe and protected from the monster under your bed. But the sort of all encompassing blackness which fills you with the sense that something sinister is about to happen. It stresses you with a sense of dread. Ichigo found herself lost in this blackness. No one was there for her to call out to, no one was there to rescue her. Ichigo and the sinister blackness were all that existed. Ichigo looked around for anything. A person, a thing, a light. Anything that could potentially take her away from the blackness. Her movements echoed through the blackness, hindered by nothing. Her heart raced and her eyes began to tear up. Where was everyone? Where was anyone?

And then, a small light began to grow. It was hard to see at first, very dim and very small. But it grew and came closer. Ichigo felt something warm and fuzzy bubble up inside her as the light penetrated the darkness. Her stress and fear melted away as the light drew near. The light began to take a human form. Ichigo looked on as out of the light came a teenage boy, a year or so older than herself. He had a fine strong body and held out a hand to her. Ichigo looked at the boy, his face too bright to see. She looked at his hand, pale and shining. Ichigo placed her hand in his and she shimmered with the same light the boy did. The ball of light behind them suddenly grew to an enormous proportion, blinding her . . .

. . . and when it died away, she felt someone's warm lips upon hers, filling her with the warm and fuzzy feeling of the ball of light. The entity began to pull away, taking some of the warm fuzzies with it. Ichigo kissed back, not wanting the feeling to leave. _This is the guy, _Ichigo thought. _But only as long as it's not my cat. _The presence pulled away and Ichigo felt as though she was surrounded by a friendly darkness, as though that shining light and that shimmering boy were only temporarily gone. Ichigo felt sure that her knight in shining armor, the boy that filled her with these warm fuzzies, would make the light shine again for her. She slowly opened her eyes and found herself looking into another's. "Knew you were faking."

Kisshu stood up and Ichigo looked up at him.

_I should punch him, _Ichigo thought.

_I should punch him, call my dad, and then watch from my mother's arms as he shoots Kisshu._

_**. . . But I won't . . . **_

_I should scream and shout for all I'm worth._

_**But what I felt was something undeniably special.**_

_I should make him pay for stealing my first kiss._

_**. . . But he felt it too.**_

_You don't _know _that._

_**So instead of screaming and making a fuss over it, I'll enjoy the moment.**_

The look she gave him seemed to say, _Did you feel that too? _Kisshu smiled. And this smile wasn't a smirk or some sort of evil twisted smile. But it was a smile of complete understanding and reassuring. Ichigo felt for one moment that Kisshu knew everything about her that she wanted known. The smile seemed to say that he understood her completely and that he knew what she was feeling. It reassured her and made the warm fuzzies bubble up again. For a single transitory moment the world seemed unbelievably right. In that one moment perfect moment, time seemed to slow down until it was frozen. In that small space, Ichigo slowly smiled back. And that smile made the moment perfect.

This was one of those moments that you would never want to end. It was one of those moments that was so perfect that you'd look upon it fondly remember it for all time. It was pristine and untainted by the outside world. A single perfect moment that lasted only a few seconds, but seemed to last forever as time slowed down for you to enjoy it. Have you ever felt one of those moments? They're rare and precious and should be cherished for eternity.

The clouds moved outside and the wind whispered in the chilly December breeze. Trees whispered and time found Ichigo and Kisshu curled up next to each other on the couch, watching a movie without a care in the world. They shared a quilted blanket and leaned against each other. And that was possibly one of the best nights either of them had ever experienced. Two teenagers, two children really, had figured out the secret of happiness: To be content with what you have. They were happy just to be with each other for that one night. Not worrying about the complications of school, or friends, or family. Not worrying about anything really.

The next day Retasu and Minto stood in an out of the way niche and observed Ichigo and Kisshu walking to school. "Admit it, I called it," Retasu said. "Nothing's been proven yet," Minto replied. Retasu smiled knowingly as Ichigo and Kisshu mounted the stone steps leading up to the school and pushed open the doors. "But it will and you know it. Perhaps it already has and they just don't know it," Retasu offered. Minto did not return her friend's smiled. "But if it does, and I'm not saying it will, then what will happen when he leaves?" Minto asked coldly. Retasu did not reply, but instead started toward the door with Minto and walked down the crowded hallway as the bell prepared to ring.

The day passed somewhat normally. Rumors floated about, revolving around various people, Ichigo and Kisshu ate lunch with Retasu and Minto, Kisshu was still slightly fearful of Retasu, and the foreign teacher had a major hangover. At the end of the day, Ichigo and Kisshu walked home and talked about other parts of the world, kanji, and over protective parents. During dinner, the Momomiya family, and Kisshu, gathered together at the table to eat.

"So, what happened at school today, honey?" Ichigo's mom asked.

"Oh, nothing much. But there's this dance coming up," Ichigo replied between bites of sushi.

"Really? Are you planning on going?" Her father asked, masking suspicions with nonchalance.

"I don't know yet. Depends on who asks," Ichigo answered uninterestedly.

"What about you Kisshu? Are you going?" Mrs. Momomiya asked.

"Eh, maybe. I might just end up going gaming or seeing a movie with a couple friends of mine," Kisshu replied.

"So how're things with Retasu and Minto? They haven't been over here lately," Mr. Momomiya asked, apparently satisfied with Kisshu's disinterest.

"They've been kinda busy, but we're planning something for this weekend. We're not entirely sure what we're gonna do yet, but we think it'll be at Minto's house," Ichigo replied.

"You mean the mansion-house or the house-house next to the mansion?" Mrs. Momomiya asked.

"Probably the mansion-house. That's the one with the big screen," Ichigo replied as she finished her sushi. "May I be excused?"

"That was quick. Are you sure you don't want some more?" Mrs. Momomiya asked.

"Quite sure," Ichigo replied and carried her dirty dishes to the sink. Kisshu quickly finished the rest of his meal and excused himself before the Momomiya parental units could interrogate him. Kisshu joined Ichigo at the sink, where she busied herself washing her dishes. They finished in silence and then headed upstairs. Ichigo shut her door and hopped into the shower and Kisshu went into his own room, where he unpacked the rest of his neglected possessions from the duffel bags. Then he took a quick shower and flopped into bed. He fell asleep listening to Ichigo's angelic aria.

Some number of days later, the foreign teacher decided to have another party. "Kisshu, we're ditching this one," Ichigo immediately whispered to her companion as soon as it was announced. "Bet we're not the only ones," Kisshu commented, looking around at all the other people, murmuring suspiciously and casting wary glances around the classroom. "C'mon. Now before he arrives," Ichigo whispered and tugged Kisshu toward the door, where many people hovered. The pair made their way through the crowd of people and walked out the door. They rounded the hallway corner just as the teacher reached the classroom door. "Just keep walking," Ichigo muttered to Kisshu when he showed signs of stopping. They hastily made their way down the hallways as nonchalantly as they could and slowed only when they were out the doors and off the premises.

"So do you still want to know more about the outside world?" Kisshu asked conversationally. "Nah," Ichigo replied. Kisshu raised his eyebrows. "You're already tired of it?" He asked. "You mistake my meaning," Ichigo responded. "I will never tire of the outside world. But now, instead of just hearing this about it, or looking at pictures in books, I want to see the outside world. I want to catch a firsthand glimpse of my own," Ichigo continued. Then she hung her head. "But that's just wishful thinking on my part. I'll never see the world, not as long as I'm under my father's jurisdiction," Ichigo said a bit sadly.

"Well you could offer to pay for your trips, it might be money that's holding him back from letting you go," Kisshu suggested. Ichigo shook her head. "Nah, I've tried that at least a dozen times. I actually have the money to this day, but I doubt that's what's holding him back," Ichigo responded. "Why not?" Kisshu inquired. "Dude, we're millionaires. One of the richest top ten in the world," Ichigo said and looked over at Kisshu. "Really? But then why—" "Do we live the way we do? Because Father Dearest believes that no one person is better than the next, and therefore, we should not be better than everyone else. So he pays for everything we need and then gives the surplus to various charities or liquefies it and starts another business," Ichigo replied without a trace of bitterness. Kisshu nodded.

"What if you were going to visit your aunt in America or some relative off in another country?" Kisshu asked. "My aunt and I have both played that card multiple times. Doesn't work," Ichigo replied. "Well what if one of your friend's asked you along?" He tried again. "No go," Ichigo replied. "Some relative died?" He asked. "Been there, done that. My dad had the body transported back here for the funeral or else sends some sort of expensive gift to the immediate family," Ichigo bitterly replied. Kisshu then came up with various plans involving kidnapping, hostages, and bunny rabbits, all of which Ichigo shot down.

"Dude, I've been trying to travel ever since I was seven," Ichigo commented, still laughing at the bunny rabbits. "Eight years," Kisshu said dubiously. "Eight years is a very long time," Ichigo responded. "You must want this really bad," Kisshu commented. "Its one of the few things that I really do want: to travel the world and see everything I can. It'd be great and I'd have tons of fun and learn a whole lot. But it'd be tons more fun if I had someone to go with, which is why I have so many plots that included my friends," Ichigo commented. Kisshu smiled and nodded. "Yeah, it is fun to travel with a friend, but once you get to two or three, you'll find that your wishing you were traveling alone. Hey, sorry about the quick subject change, but the market is that way, isn't it?" Kisshu asked pointing vaguely in a direction. Ichigo nodded. "I have an errand to run, I'll meet you back at the house," Kisshu said and took off.

Ichigo looked after him, slightly puzzled, but shrugged it off and continued on her way. She thought a little bit about what Kisshu had said concerning bringing friends into the equation. She could always just get up and leave if she wanted to, but that'd cause a bad relationship between her and her parents. But then again, who knew? In time, if she stayed away long enough, they might forgive her. _I do have enough money to stay out for a couple of years, _Ichigo thought to herself. Then she shook her head. _Who am I kidding? I'm just a little coward, waiting for Daddy Dearest's permission to go gallivanting off into the world . . . _

Ichigo passed by the market and a number of large grey buildings. She came to the top of a hill and turned around. Ichigo looked down upon half of the city. Tall grey buildings, seemingly made up of ash with grey little ants of people walking to and from. In the center of this circus ring of ashes was the brightly colored marketplace. All noise seemed to emanate from that one chromatic point. People bustled and bartered, children scampered and laughed. Ichigo tried to pick out Kisshu, but, for all his spinach green hair, could not. So she ran her eyes once more around the circus ring of ashes and up to the bottom of the hill, where she had come from. But coming up from the bottom of the hill were five college guys. They were all dressed in black, the color of death and mourning, but on their blackness they sported skulls and roses, all done in ash grey. Ichigo surveyed them coming upand realized that one of them was eyeing her. She avoided making eye-contact and turned on her heels. Ichigo began walking down the hill, but soon heard the trails of the boys' conversation.

Ichigo picked up the pace, but also heard them pick it up behind her. Her heart beat faster and a sense of fear crept into her. She quickly took in her surroundings, searching for anything that could provide protection or act as a weapon. Hm . . . she was coming up on the park, but it was a little to far away to bring any sort of comfort. There was a giant tree up ahead. The branches looked a little high, but she might be able to make it. Numerous useless bushes lines the sidewalk and would provide little hindrance to the boys should Ichigo decide to make a run for it. Ichigo hurried her pace and glanced back. The boys were running now. _To heck with it_ Ichigo decided. She shifted her book bag and sprinted toward the tree.

"Hey hotstuff, wait up!" One of the boys called. Ichigo didn't waste any energy in replying.

_Why are you running? You took all those self-defense classes you nitwit!_

_**Yeah, but there are five of them. I was taught to combat one on one.**_

_So? You're smart. You can make it work._

_**No I can't!**_

_Yes you can!_

_**I can't and you know it!**_

_Liar! Stop running toward the tree. Get behind them and kick their butts!_

_**Too late.**_

Ichigo reached the tree and took a deep breath before leaping at the lowest branch. Missed it. She cast a glance back at the boys. "How about a kiss," One of them jeered. Ichigo leaped again and caught it. She swung herself up and once she was sure of her footing, reached for the next branch, higher up. The tree didn't offer much protection in the way of hiding her with its leaves, but it did offer her the advantage of height. The boys had gathered around the base of the tree. Upon closer inspection Ichigo noticed that they were all very burly and seemed ten times as scary up close. Except for one guy. The one guy was a twig compared to the rest. He was short, skinny, and anemic looking.

Ichigo pulled out her cell phone, intending to call her parents. "Hey, nice undies," A different one of them called. A couple boys whistled. "Wanna come down and have a little fun?" Another asked. Ichigo made a very rude gesture at them and pushed the speed dial for her father. Busy, gosh dang it. The boys made faces at her and shouted more comments up to her, which she ignored. Ichigo tried her home phone, surely her mother wasn't yammering on to one of her friends. Answering machine, well maybe a long message would grab her mother's attention if she was even home. No such luck. Ichigo dialed the police and got put on hold. _Screw them._ She thought and disconnected.

Ichigo looked down again and saw that Twig-boy had gotten onto the lowest branch and was clambering up toward her to the tune of the other boys, who were egging him on. She climbed further up through the tangle of branches and looked for a comparatively thin one that she could break. Hm . . . nope. Not that one. Or that one. Bingo. Ichigo secured her hands on the branch above and stomped on the branch below until it cracked. She eased herself down to a lower one and broke the branch the rest of the way off. Ichigo held it like a mace and turned to face Twig-boy. She swiped at his head, but he managed to dodge. She swung again and managed to soundly thwack his shoulder. The boy shouted in pain and almost lost his balance. One more hit should take him down. Ichigo brought it down upon Twig-boy, but he caught it just barely and hauled it to the side. Both she and Twig-boy lost their balance and fell from the tree. Ichigo screamed as she fell, fearing the painful connection with the ground.

But the connection was never made. Strong arms caught Ichigo, breaking her fall. Ichigo opened her eyes and prepared to punch the guy holding her, but her jaw dropped in shock. "Kisshu?" She asked. "I think I'm gonna call you Koneko from now on and shadow you," He commented as he set her down. "Can you fight?" Ichigo asked glancing at the college boys, who were by now preparing for a slaughter. Kisshu nodded. "You take the two on the right and I'll take the ones on the left," Ichigo instructed. The college boys surrounded the couple (all of them, that is except Twig-boy). Kisshu and Ichigo were back to back. "You sure about this, let's remember that you were the one in the tree," Kisshu commented. "Dude, I can't take five, but I _can _take two," Ichigo hissed. Kisshu nodded. "Your call, Koneko."


	4. Warring

**Chapter 4**

Kisshu and Ichigo took a defensive position, waiting for the boys to start the brawl. The one who'd made the remark about Ichigo's unders made the first punch. He lurched toward Kisshu, who deftly blocked the punch and kneed the older boy in the stomach. The second one ran up and tackled Kisshu. But the green haired boy used his legs to flip the older boy over and onto his back. Kisshu sprang back up and slugged the other boy in the face just as he was preparing to attack again. On Ichigo's side, the first boy made a grab at her, but she blocked, kneed him in the groin and kicked him over. He flew backward and hit the tree with a sickening thud. The other came at her from the side, ramming into her. Ichigo embraced the pain and used her momentum to swing around a lamppost and kicked him in the head.

Ichigo's first boy lurched up and tackled Kisshu at the knees, causing the younger boy to fall forward. Ichigo whipped around and someone grabbed her by the hair. Her hair ribbons fell to the ground. Ichigo bit back a scream and kicked her tormentor in the shins. Immediately the hand let go of her hair. Ichigo turned on her heels and scored another kick in the boy's face. Knock out! Ichigo smiled grimly and turned to the other boy, poised and ready to fight. A scary looking gothic face stared into Kisshu's and prepared to punch him. Kisshu twisted to the side and dodged the punch, but the other boy was still holding his legs. He tried to kick free, but had to stop after half an attempt to dodge another punch from Scary-man. The third boy was up and moving again and was preparing to kick Kisshu with his feet. If Kisshu didn't do something fast, winning chances were going down the drain.

Ichigo ran up to the boy holding Kisshu down and kicked him soundly in the ribs. The boy screamed in pain and immediately let go of Kisshu. Kisshu rolled out of the way of another punch and a viciously intended kick and bounced up. Ichigo stood next to Kisshu and quickly took inventory of her assailants. Twig-boy and the guy that pulled her hair were down for the count. Only Scary-man and his two cronies were left, one of them on the ground looking quite faint, so, technically it was only two. "Fight or flee?" Ichigo directed her question at Kisshu. "Somehow, I don't think fleeing is an actual choice right now," Kisshu answered. Scary-man snorted and pawed the ground, much like a bull. "Fleeing is always a choice," Ichigo responded as the bull charged.

Wait for it. Waaaait for it . . Now! Ichigo tackled Kisshu to the ground as Scary-man the bull rushed at them. Scary-man ran straight into the tree with a loud _Crack! _He staggered backward a few paces and dropped to the ground. Ichigo surveyed the last boy standing. "So, will _you _flee?" Ichigo asked him. The boy made a weak sounding stutter and in one quick motion ran away. Ichigo picked up her hair ribbons and shoved them in her pocket before turning to Kisshu. "Let's . . . go home."

Ichigo and Kisshu picked up a fast pace as they were walking home, somewhat paranoid that more of those college boys would pop out of nowhere. When they reached the house they quickly let themselves in and locked the door behind them. The pair then split up and checked all the windows in the house, making sure they were shut and locked. When Ichigo had finished checking the back and garage doors she joined Kisshu in the living room.

"So what was all that nonsense about calling me Koneko?" She asked. "I dunno. I have Koneko back at my parents' place. She's my pet cat. Koneko has a knack for getting into trouble and acting a lot like you do," Kisshu explained. Ichigo nodded, not quite understanding, but feigning it none the less. ". . . Okaaay," She commented. Kisshu shrugged. "Are you hungry, Koneko?" Kisshu asked after a moment. "Not particularly, but I'm sure I can hunt something down for you if _you're _hungry," Ichigo responded. "That works too," Kisshu commented and sat back on the couch while Ichigo foraged food from the fridge.

Ichigo and Kisshu ate a small snack and Ichigo made sure that they both washed up before her parents came home. Ichigo and Kisshu kept the fight from Ichigo's parents, seeing as it would only make many people discontent and they'd already given the boys a thrashing. Her parents did not pick up on Kisshu calling her 'Koneko,' which was probably a good thing. Dinner was eaten in silence and afterward both teens and parents went off to bed.

The next morning, Ichigo woke up at an unusually early time. She sat up in bed, bright and chipper and ready to seize the day. She bounced out of bed and plucked a random outfit from her closet and dashed in the bathroom to get ready for school. Ichigo was downstairs eating breakfast and hurrying to finish last-minute homework before she realized that it was Saturday. "Well that was a waste of time, I could 'a been sleeping in," Ichigo said discontentedly to herself. She dropped her pencil on the table and pushed her homework away as though it was a dead rat. Ichigo sunk into her chair and wondered what to do.

_You could go back to bed._

_**But I don't wanna. I'm already awake and dressed.**_

_So?_

_**So I've already started thinking. I'd go back to bed if I hadn't been thinking.**_

_You fool!_

_**Hey, I thought it was a school day!**_

_Psh. Go do something else then._

_**Like what?**_

_I dunno. Play a prank on Kisshu or something._

_**o-oo, I could actually do that!**_

_Hey, I was kidding._

_**Too bad. Now I'm stuck on that idea.**_

_Sigh . . ._

_**Stop that, now be quiet or help me concoct a devious plot.**_

_I should just keep my big mouth shut._

_**Fine, have it your way.**_

_Thank you. _

_**Well?**_

_I dunno. What?_

_**What should I do now, you moron.**_

_Go finish your homework._

Ichigo frowned and thought that she was starting to sound like her mother. All of the sudden she felt very lethargic and didn't want to finish off the homework lying in front of her. Footsteps sounded on the stairs. Too late to go back to bed. Or was it? She could sneak around by way of the kitchen and slip back upstairs while whoever it was bumbled around. Ichigo smiled at the thought of sneaking around her own house.

Kisshu, dressed only in a very large nightshirt, stumbled down the stairs and plopped down on the couch next to Ichigo. "What're you doing up this early?" Ichigo asked. "I could ask you the same thing," Kisshu replied. "I asked you first though," Ichigo pointed out. "Ok, but only if you answer a different question first," Kisshu bartered. "Depends on the question," Ichigo replied. "Would you say 'yes' if someone asked you to the dance?" Kisshu asked. "Well that would depend on the boy," Ichigo replied. "What if it was me?" Kisshu continued. "Then it would depend on the way you asked," Ichigo answered. "Then how would you like me to ask?" Kisshu inquired. "I dunno. Surprise me," Ichigo replied with a smile. Kisshu smirked. "Leaving me to my own devices are you?" He asked. Ichigo shrugged. "Want some breakfast?" She asked. Kisshu nodded and let Ichigo make him some food for the second time within a week. Kisshu wandered from the couch over to the table and puzzled over how to ask Ichigo to the dance.

By the time Ichigo returned to the den with food and found that Kisshu wasn't there, said boy had come up with the bright idea of asking Minto and Retasu what to do. They were Ichigo's friends after all. Kisshu ate the food, complemented Ichigo on it, took care of his dishes, and then headed back upstairs. Ichigo thought he was going up there to get dressed. Kisshu thought he was going up there to look up Retasu's and Minto's numbers so he could call them and ask about Ichigo. However, neither of those was to happen as the young teens thought.

Kisshu snuck into Ichigo's room and began hunting through her desk for the cell phone. He opened the first couple of drawers and found some office supplies and shiny trinkets. Nestled inside the next couple drawers, he found wrinkled papers, pencil shavings, and photographs. He glanced out the door and then plucked a few of the photographs out and gazed upon them. Many were of Minto, Retasu, and Ichigo; however, a few included a dark haired boy Kisshu had never seen before. An old friend perhaps? All of them did look rather young in the photo. Ichigo must have been nine or ten. Kisshu carefully placed the photos back in the drawer and shut it. He left the bottom drawers untouched, believing that Ichigo would not place her cell phone at the bottom. Instead, he started sifting through all the junk on top of the desk.

Cluttered on top of the desk were three sets of mini drawers, all different sizes, a metallic red mug of fifty billion colored pencils, a clear glass of regular pencil and a couple pens, random papers shoved off to one side, various school related text books, and a large assortment of bells. Kisshu looked at the bells curiously. Each one of them shone like a mirror, but none of them were the same size. There were golden bells and silver bells, and bells painted with metallic colors (mainly red and purple). Some of the bells looked good enough to eat, but Kisshu restrained himself, opting instead for a renegade marshmallow hidden amongst the bells.

Kisshu's ears pricked up as he heard the water running in the kitchen. Ichigo was almost done with whatever it was she was doing. He stopped examining the bells and went through the drawers. The first couple was chalk full of random gizmos and chocolate. The second held a large variety of origami paper and the last six drawers were full of pencils, erasers, rubber bouncy balls, and sticky notes. There was also a fancy bookmark in one of the drawers. Kisshu heard Ichigo on the stairs. Time's up. He paused and looked around. _Drat it, phone must be in her backpack, _Kisshu thought. He took one last glance around the room and dashed into his own. He jumped into a pair of jeans lying on the floor and was pulling on a large black t-shirt when Ichigo checked in on him. "You ok?" She asked, popping her head in the door. "Yeah, why?" Kisshu answered and questioned her at the same time. "I dunno. I thought I heard some funny noises up here," Ichigo puzzled and retreated to her own room.

Kisshu waited until Ichigo shut her door before going downstairs. He quietly made his way toward her backpack by the kitchen table. Kisshu squatted down next to it and peeked inside. He shuffled through bells, notebooks, random papers, more bells, and a pencil bag before moving onto the other pockets of the backpack. He was soon rewarded with a small metallic pink phone in a white leather case with a small Hello Kitty dangly phone thing. Kisshu looked over his shoulder to make sure Ichigo hadn't seen him. He stuffed the pretty phone in his pocket and quickly ascended the stairs.

Once he reached his room, Kisshu took out a palm computer (the only computer gizmo he happened to own, although he had invented many) and connected it to Ichigo's cell phone using a long black cable. He downloaded her phonebook and on a second thought, her pictures. Kisshu disconnected the phone and quietly returned it to its place in Ichigo's backpack before plopping down on the couch and sifting through Ichigo's phone numbers.

There were thirteen numbers in the phonebook. Two were Retasu's (home and cell), five were Minto's (three cell and two home), one was for a boy called Masaya, one was for work, another three were her parents' cell numbers and the home phone, and the last had no name, but had called her so frequently was it was automatically added to the phonebook. Kisshu announced that he was making a phone call from the home phone and Ichigo grunted in reply. Taking that as permission to do so, Kisshu trooped downstairs and dialed Retasu's cell number first. He hung up while the phone was still connecting. _I should be able to do this on my own,_ he thought. _And I will. But first I'll go through these pictures; I might get an idea from one of them. _

Kisshu flipped through the pictures on Ichigo's phone. There were many pictures from long ago of Ichigo and that dark haired boy. There were some pictures of people at a party and a random picture of a zebra right smack dab in the middle of the party pictures. Then Retasu and Minto started appearing and the dark haired boy suddenly vanished. Kisshu finished looking through the pictures. He sat back and suddenly the perfect idea hit him. Kisshu bolted up and ran into the kitchen, then stopped suddenly, crashed into the counter, wheeled around and ran to the telephone.

Ichigo looked up from the book she was reading. There was some scuffling downstairs and then a crash. She picked up very faint and muffles groans of pain and then pounding footsteps. Then all lapsed into silence. Ichigo chuckled. Whatever it was Kisshu was doing, he wasn't doing it very efficiently. She returned to her book, but looked up again when she heard the phone ring. It stopped after the second _brrrrrring! _And Ichigo heard Kisshu talking. Out of curiosity, she crept up to the phone and picked it up. She held the receiver down and covered the phone's microphone. Kisshu was talking to a girl. Retasu, possibly? No way. She was still highly suspicious of him.

Girl: _So the reservation's for Tuesday, right?_

**It could be Minto. But then where was the accent and the snobbishness? Not Minto.**

Kisshu: _M hmm._

Girl: _and you're doing pick-up._

**What were they talking about? A date!? No way. **

Kisshu: _No, We're just going to magically appear._

Girl: _Fine, fine. No need for sarcasm._

**Nah. Couldn't be a date. Could it? Come to think of it, the voice was sounding a bit like Minto now.**

Kisshu: _Well then. Are we set for Tuesday?_

Girl: _Sounds like it._

**No, not Minto. Sounded a bit like Retasu. Who was this girl??**

Kisshu: Bye.

Girl: _click_

Ichigo waited for Kisshu to hang up before hanging up her end and scurrying back to her book to think. Kisshu couldn't possibly be dating someone. No way. At least, he better not be. Ichigo thought about the conversation. She mulled it over and analyzed, turned it over in her head, but couldn't make heads or tails of it. In the end, she went with the conclusion that Kisshu was asking some random girl out. In effect, Ichigo decided to spy upon her houseguest . . .

Kisshu hung up the phone feeling pretty good about himself. He'd just made plans with Retasu and Minto (turned out Minto had a three way phone, who knew?) to ask Ichigo out to the dance. Or rather, he'd made the plans and Retasu and Minto gave him advice and were going to come and watch. He heard something on the staircase and looked up to see a pair of fuzzy pink socks with the rest of the person lurking in shadow. The pink fuzzy socks moved out of the light. "Ichigo?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo poked her head out of the shadows and then began walked down a couple steps and leaned over the railing. "Yeah?" She asked.

"Have I ever told you you're beautiful?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo blushed and felt a smiled creep up onto her face. "No, but thank you," She replied. "Would you like to go out with me? To lunch the day after tomorrow?" Kisshu asked. "Where would we be going?" Ichigo asked. "Well, I don't suppose you'd want to go to Café Mew Mew, seeing as you work there, so let's go to . . . the Itachi Bakery," Kisshu decided and then looked up at Ichigo. "That's my favorite café!" Ichigo exclaimed in delight. Kisshu smiled. "So that's a yes?" he asked. Ichigo nodded. Whoever that other girl was, she was going down.

Ichigo ran upstairs to phone Minto and Retasu and tell them the good news of great joy. She grabbed the cordless phone from her dresser and flopped onto her bed. Ichigo dialed Minto's number quicker than anyone would have believed possible.

"Moshi moshi, this is Aizawa Minto speaking."

"MINTO! MINTO! GUESS WHAT-GUESS WHAT-GUESS WHAT!!" Ichigo fairly yelled into the phone. Minto jumped and held the receiver away from her face.

"Um. . . you're dad said you could go to Europe?" Minto guessed.

"No," Ichigo said, drawing out the 'o' in a teasing manner.

"You finally got a 'B' in science?" Minto guessed again.

"Now _that _would be something worth yelling about, but, no," Ichigo commented. "I got asked out on a date by Kisshu!" Ichigo exclaimed, unable to keep it in any longer.

"No Way!" Minto squealed. "You have to come over ASAP and give me the full details. I'll call Retasu and send a ride for you," Minto said in a rush.

"See you soon!" Both girls said and hung up. Ichigo leaped out of bed, feeling dizzy with happiness. She slid down the stair railing and landed neatly in front of the door. She located her shoes and slipped them up. Kisshu came in out of the kitchen with a mouthful of something. He chewed and swallowed and laughed silently to himself. Ichigo turned around. "What are you laughing at?" She asked. "Oh, nothing," Kisshu said playfully. "Well, nothing must be pretty funny," Ichigo commented. "Yes, it is," Kisshu agreed with a chuckle. A honk came from outside. "Oops, gotta run. See you later," Ichigo said as she hurried out the door. Kisshu ran after her. "Where are you going?" He shouted as Ichigo was getting into the small, but classy car. "Don't worry, I'm going to Minto's house," Ichigo shouted back. Kisshu nodded and the chauffeur closed the door. Kisshu watched the small car vanished around the corner before closing the house door.

Minto and Retasu were sitting on one of Minto's many large and fluffy beds. "See, didn't I tell you this was gonna happen?" Minto asked Retasu with a laugh. "Fine, I admit it, you called it," Retasu said, raising her hands in mock surrender. "But this is the first guy she's ever agreed to go out with," Retasu continued. "Yeah, but _this _one had our permission," Minto replied, leaning back against a few of her luxurious and frilly pillows. "So now we're conspirators. She's still gonna be really sad when he leaves," Retasu replied. "Spoilsport," Minto accused her friend and hit her lightly with a pillow. "Don't think about that right now. Right now, the point is that Ichigo actually agreed to go out with a guy, and we approve of him. . . . more or less," Minto added as an afterthought.

"And, hey, you never know. He might actually get her out to see the world," Minto continued. "I think that's stretching it a bit far. Kisshu's good, but not that good," Retasu laughed and threw the pillow back at Minto. Minto giggled and shrugged. "You don't know that. He might have some far-fetched plan that we haven't tried yet," Minto argued and threw the pillow back at Retasu. "Or he could just break her heart into a million pieces when he leaves without her and her dad censors out all Kisshu's letters to her," Retasu said in a doomsday voice and threw the pillow back at Minto. Both girls paused for a moment, and then broke out into laughter. Ichigo's dad would never censor the mail. Just then there was a knock on the door and Ichigo walked in. "What's so funny?" She asked.


	5. Warning

**Chapter 5**

Ichigo, Minto, and Retasu were in a room on the ground floor. Minto was wearing a pale blue satin nightgown. Retasu sat curled up with a teddy bear and Ichigo was wearing a light cotton pajama shirt with matching drawstring pants. They were liberally spread out on the couch watching "Ever After" on a TV as large as a movie screen. This was only the third chick flick and it was already 10 p.m. A variety of sugary sweets and pastries were arranged on a long table in front of the couch. Ichigo popped a truffle into her mouth. "Kill him! Kill him!" Retasu shouted as Danielle held the evil count at sword point. When the heroine of the movie failed to kill him, Retasu let out a disgruntle sigh. Ichigo glanced at her friend. "Retasu, I never knew you were so violent," Ichigo commented. "C'mon, that guy needs to die. I mean, he's so disgusting and … yucky," Retasu argued. "I'm with you there, Retasu-chan," Minto commented as she grabbed a chocolate covered doughnut. Just then, Ichigo picked up some rustling noises outside.

"Hey guys, did you hear that?" Ichigo asked. "What?" Minto asked. Ichigo listened intently. There was a resounding thump against the side of the house. "Hah! There it is again! You guys heard that, didn't you?" Ichigo asked. Minto got up off the couch. "No one should be out there this late at night. I'm going to go ask Jacque to see what it is," Minto replied and walked out of the room. Retasu paused the movie. Ichigo picked up a flashlight and went over to the window. She heaved it open and threw the beam across the Aizawa Gardens. Out of the corner of the beam, she saw a flicker of movement. She cast the beam upon it and caught a boot vanishing into the cover of a bush. "Retasu, come look! I think there's someone in the gardens," Ichigo called to her friend. "Who is it?" Retasu asked as she came over. "I'm not sure. All I saw was a boot. He's hiding in that bush over there," Ichigo said. Retasu leaned over.

Suddenly, rough hands grabbed Retasu around the waist and pulled her outside. Ichigo grabbed onto her friend and for a moment it seemed like she would succeed in pulling Retasu in, but someone must've been helping the intruder because not only did Retasu go flying out the window, but Ichigo went with her. The two girls screamed as they fell and landed harshly on the grass. The intruders threw the girls over their shoulders and began to run. "Hey! What's going on out here?" A strong masculine voice shouted. _Jacque! _Ichigo thought. "Ichigo! Retasu! Where are you?" Minto shouted searching with a flashlight. Ichigo opened her mouth to reply, but the man threw her off his shoulders and clamped a hand over her mouth. He pushed her into the shadows of a tree. Jacque and Minto heard Retasu screaming and ran after her. Ichigo's captor was careful to keep to the shadows as Minto and Jacque ran by. Once they were out of hearing range, the man let go of Ichigo's mouth.

"What do you want from me?" Ichigo asked. The man slid his hands around her waist and pulled her close to him. "What are you doing?" Ichigo asked suspiciously. "All I want," He said quietly leaning in, "is to play." Ichigo raised her hand to slap him, but he caught it before it made contact. "You know, I was going for the Aizawa girl, but you'll do just as fine," The man commented. Ichigo struggled to get away, but her efforts were to no avail. Then someone swung out of the trees and tackled the man. Ichigo seized the opportunity and jumped away from the man and ran toward the Aizawa house. "Koneko-chan! Wait!" a familiar voice called. Ichigo reached the window and picked up the flashlight she'd dropped when she'd been pulled from the window. She flicked it on and shone it at the voice.

Ichigo saw Kisshu and beside him, unconscious on the ground, a large man in black. Come to think of it, that man kind of resembled one of the college boys from the park . . . "Agck! Ichigo, point that thing somewhere else!" Kisshu complained, shielding his eyes from the blinding light. "Kisshu!" Ichigo gasped. She dropped the flashlight and ran to him. Ichigo flung her arms around his neck and hugged him. Kisshu wrapped him arms around her waist and hugged her back. "Are you okay?" He asked. "Thanks to you," Ichigo replied. They stood there for a minute, embracing each other. Each felt that the moment was perfect. Ichigo was the one to break it off. "I should go find Retasu and Minto," Ichigo said and stepped away from him. "I should go with you, to protect you, Koneko-chan," Kisshu replied. "Okay," Ichigo agreed and took his hand in hers.

"So how did you know to come after me?" Ichigo asked. "When you're in love, you just know," Kisshu said. Ichigo blushed and was grateful for the darkness. But at the same time, the complement made her feel unsettled. Was he really in love with her? After all she'd heard in that phone call, she wasn't sure if he really loved her. The thought that Kisshu might love someone else made her feel cold inside. Why was that? She didn't really love him. . . . did she? Ichigo let go of Kisshu's hand. "Something wrong?" Kisshu asked, looking down at her. "No, I was just thinking that we should wait for Minto and Retasu here, instead of looking for them," Ichigo quickly said. Kisshu shrugged. "Okay, if that's what you wanna do," he replied and they both jumped back in through the window.

They both settled in on the couch and watched the last few minutes of "Ever After." Then the credits came on. If Ichigo hadn't been so worried about her friends, she would've leaned over and gone to sleep during the credits. If her friends hadn't been kidnapped, they would've changed the movie and kept on going 'til two or three in the morning. But the facts were that her friends, well one of them, had been kidnapped by one of those stupid college boys who was probably going to try to rape her, and Minto had gone after Retasu with the butler, Jacque. And Ichigo was gravely worried. She was starting to change her mind about going after them.

Ichigo carefully leaned her head on Kisshu's shoulder. "Do you think Minto and Jacque caught the kidnapper?" Ichigo asked. Kisshu looked down at her and put his arm around her shoulder. Then he sighed. "What if there's more than two of the kidnappers?" Ichigo asked worriedly. "What if there's a third and fourth and one of them knocks out Jacque while the other kidnaps Minto!" Ichigo's eyes widened with this last suggestion entering her mind. She sat straight and drew her legs up, resting her chin on her knees. But she didn't move Kisshu's arm away. Both were silent for a moment.

"Well, do you wanna go look for them?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo's head popped up. "Sure. And we should probably move the other kidnapper over to the house for the police, if he's still there," Ichigo said. Kisshu nodded. "But I think you should put on a coat or something," Kisshu suggested, referring to Ichigo's pajamas, which were both thin and somewhat revealing. Ichigo nodded and ran off to get one of Minto's long trench coats . . . or something. Which ever came first.

Kisshu and Ichigo slipped out the window again, feeling a bit like they were doing something wrong (but this was because they were using the window versus the door, however, they weren't quite sure that they could find their way back to the kidnapper if they left through the door). They quickly found Ichigo's kidnapper and because he was still unconscious, they swiftly dragged him back to the room, tied him up, and left him in a corner. Then they went out again, using the door this time, and began the search for Minto, Retasu, and, perhaps, Jacque.

As the pair walked through the large grove of trees, Ichigo's ears perked up. She paused and cocked her head, listening. Kisshu stopped too. "What is it?" He asked. "I thought I heard something," Ichigo responded in a suspicious half-whisper. Kisshu stood quietly and listened, trying to hear what Ichigo had heard. Suddenly, Ichigo took off, heading deeper into the forest-like grove of trees. Kisshu immediately followed, but had no idea what Ichigo was following or heading toward.

As they drew closer to … whatever-it-was, Kisshu began to hear what Ichigo had heard by the house. It was the sound of voice, arguing a bit and not very hushed. The voices were rough and decidedly male. Both Ichigo and Kisshu slowed the pace as they drew closer. They hid in the shadows and spied on the voices and sure enough, two men in black. They had their masks off and were arguing. Ichigo's eyes widened and she had the sudden and burning desire to kill them. They were two of the college guys who had harassed her earlier and they had tied Retasu up and thrown her on the ground. Retasu was obviously scared to death and in pain. Ichigo started to slink closer, using the shadows as cover. Kisshu tried to hold her back, but she was too quick. Soon, Ichigo was behind Retasu. She soundlessly pulled her friend to safety and untied her. Kisshu slipped over. The two bastards were still arguing in hushed voices. Ichigo and Kisshu looked at each other. Kisshu raised an eyebrow and jerked his head toward the kidnappers. Ichigo nodded and her jaw clenched, making a vein bulge on her forehead. Anger boiled up inside her.

_Hurting me is one thing, but hurting my friends? You two bastards just entered a whole new ball park called Hell._

Ichigo and Kisshu crept in the darkness until each was behind one of the kidnappers. One of them threw the flashlight at the other. It hit its target and fell to the ground. It bounced lightly and rolled a little. The beam revealed the bottom of Kisshu's shoes. But not for long. With a huge roar, Ichigo jumped on the one closest to her. Both of the men screamed like little girls and swung wildly. Ichigo bounced off the first, flipped and landed on her feet. While Kisshu socked his target, Ichigo hefted up a large branch and started beating the kidnappers with it. "How DARE you hurt my friends! How DARE you, you BASTARDS!!" Ichigo shouted as she beat them. Kisshu dodged a wayward blow and quickly stepped out of the danger zone. The two kidnappers stumbled toward the edge of the forest, completely forgetting about the flashlight. She whacked them one last time before they got out of her range.

"Retasu! Is that you?" Minto shouted, running up with Jacques. "Ichigo? What happened?" Minto asked upon seeing her. Ichigo picked up the flashlight and pointed at the retreating backs of the kidnappers. "Them. They harassed me earlier this week, but Kisshu and I beat 'em up. I think they were after me this time, but got Retasu," Ichigo replied angrily. Minto nodded and Jacques was already after them. Retasu stood up, having been untied by Kisshu, and fell into the shelter of her friends. The four of them watched as Jacques grabbed the kidnappers by their collars and roughly escorted them to the gate. Then Minto turned to Kisshu.

"So, speaking of trespassers, what exactly are you doing here, Kisshu?" Minto asked.

"Oh, nothing of consequence," Kisshu said quickly. Minto nodded sarcastically.

"Uh-huh, sure you were," She replied.

"Hey, aren't 'cha gonna thank me for helping rescue your friend?" Kisshu asked, trying to change the subject.

"And what, pray tell, did you have in mind?" Minto asked, ready to give him the boot.

"I just wanted to talk with Ichigo for a five minutes," Kisshu said without explanation. Minto glanced at Ichigo. Perceiving a slight nod, Minto decided not to give him the boot.

"Fine. Five minutes. Retasu and I are going back to the house, but if you take longer, I'm coming back with Jacques," Minto threatened and left. Kisshu watched her leave, then turned to Ichigo.

"Have you ever tried to date anyone?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo was startled.

"Not really," She replied.

"Why?" Kisshu asked.

"Because I was never interested in any of the guys who wanted to go out with me . . . ? Is this a trick question?" Ichigo asked, laughing nervously.

"No. I'm not trying to trick you, or anything. Has your dad arranged a marriage for you?" Kisshu tried again.

"Um . . . not that I know of," Ichigo replied. "Why?"

"Well, I overheard this conversation between your dad and one of his friends or patrons or something . . ." Kisshu started and then related the following conversation to Ichigo:

"_Well, Mr. Momomiya, how is Ichigo coming along?"_

"_She'll be ready to marry in a month or so. Her sixteenth birthday is coming up in a couple weeks and after that is the Sumiya Winter Gala."_

"_I'll take her then."_

"_What about the ceremony?"_

"_After. I want to decide if she's worthy of being a wife."_

"_No, the ceremony comes before. What about the family's honor?"_

"_Don't worry. I'm still giving her the dress and I'll pay for the wedding."_

"_I see. When will you give it to her?"_

"_I'll send it over in a box. It will arrive two days before the Gala."_

"_I see."_

"_Then it's settled?"_

" _. . . Yes."_

"I think he won't let you travel because he's afraid you'll wander off, or something like that. Especially now," Kisshu stated.

"Father wouldn't do that. He may be overprotective, but he wouldn't force me into a marriage," Ichigo defended.

"Are you sure, the situation looked pretty clear to me," Kisshu replied.

"But he's my dad. And he's a millionaire. He doesn't need anything by marriage," Ichigo reasoned.

"Maybe there's something you don't know about. Just a warning. Anywho, I'll see you later," Kisshu said and ran off.

Ichigo stood silently, shocked, and re-evaluating her father. She wondered what he would do if she tried to go out with someone. She could make someone up. Nah. He'd check up and that plan would fail.

_I'm sure there must be some way to tell . . ._

_**What about that blonde guy that keeps asking you out?**_

_Who? Shirogane?_

_**Yeah, him. I'm sure you could say yes and then see what you're father does.**_

_That's an idea._

_**You don't really care about him or see him at all at school, so it doesn't matter what happens to him.**_

_True, very true._

_**You'd only have to go on one date to find out. You might not even end up going on that date at all, if Kisshu is right.**_

_This could work. And it's not like I have to say yes to him again. . . . This could work._

Ichigo traveled back to Minto's house, getting in through one of the many side doors instead of the window. This new development troubled her. What if her father really had arranged a marriage for her? That would be horrible. There were so many things she wanted to do, places she wanted to see. How dare he arrange a marriage for her?! If this was true, what would she do?

_**If this is true, you could leave.**_

_How? He'd find me and bring me back._

_**You could change your identity. Your hair, eyes, clothes, name, everything.**_

_But that would never work. He's always found me, no matter where I hide._

_**But you've never hidden like this. You could use the money in your hidden accounts and you could change your appearance and your wardrobe and personal information. **_

_But where could I run? Anywhere in Japan and word would eventually get around._

_**So go travel.**_

_How? I don't even have a passport._

_**Minto. I'm sure she's got connections. After changing your appearance, I'm sure she would help you.**_

_But what if Father hasn't arranged anything?_

_**What if he has. This is your big chance.**_

_But . . . what if I don't want to?_

_**. . . then it is a sad life that you lead Miss Momomiya Ichigo. A sad life indeed.**_

Ichigo sighed heavily and entered the room. The movie had finished and Retasu and Minto were stuffing themselves full of chocolate, the comfort food. Retasu had come out of shock and was crying a little. Minto was comforting her friend and had locked the window and pulled the curtains over it. Minto looked up.

"So what did Kisshu have to say?" She asked.

"Nothing of consequence," Ichigo replied gloomily and plopped down next to the food. She took a chocolate covered donut and tore off a piece to stuff it in her mouth.


	6. Worrying

**Chapter 6**

Then next day at school, Ichigo was on the look out for Shirogane. Oddly enough, he was nowhere on his regular route. She'd figured out his route for avoidance purposes near the beginning of the years, not that it ever stopped him. Ichigo was debating about whether or not to mention it to Retasu and Minto in science class when Retasu brought it up herself.

"You know, come to think of it, we haven't seen Shirogane in a while," Retasu commented.

"He must be planning something bigger than usual," Minto hypothesized.

"Wait a minute, who are we talking about?" Kisshu asked, joining them.

"Ryou Shirogane," Ichigo replied.

"He keeps on asking Ichigo out. He's been doing it since, like, third grade," Minto replied.

"Really?" Kisshu asked looked at Ichigo.

"Yep. He's probably gonna do something during lunch," Ichigo shrugged. The bell rang and Minto and Retasu scurried back to their seated, hoping they would get there before the teacher arrived. As the teacher was rambling on about how to do the lab, Kisshu passed Ichigo a note.

**Are you doing anything tomorrow?**

Ichigo vaguely remembered bits of the conversation between Kisshu and the mystery woman and smiled. So they had been talking about her . . . right?

_**Just school.**_

Ichigo passed the piece of paper back and took a few side notes the teacher had written on the board. Kisshu passed back the piece of paper. People in the back had begun to quietly twitter about something or other.

**Good. Do you want to go to the Itachi Jungle Bakery after school?**

That was a new one. Ichigo had never been to the bakery, but had often passed it by. Apparently it was a buffet style restaurant filled with sugary goodness. It wasn't like Ichigo was avoiding it; she just never had the opportunity. And here the opportunity was, knocking at her door. Ichigo smiled as she wrote:

_**Sure. :] Let's skip eighth.**_

She passed the note back and heard Kisshu's muffled groan and knew that he was remembering the last time they'd gone to eighth. Stupid hook-up party. She wondered how much he remembered about it. Probably just as much as she did. She watched from the corner of her eye as he wrote something else and passed it back.

**Aww. I wanted another kiss. :[**

Dang it. He remembered. Ichigo decided to stop that rumor here, or at least make believe that she didn't remember.

_**WTH?! I didn't kiss you.**_

She passed the note back, wondering what he would do. He passed the note back.

**I was your prince and you kissed me.**

He really did remember it well. Ichigo decided to stop the pretending.

_**JK. ; ]**_

She saw Kisshu sigh with relief and scribble something else on the paper.

**Let's run away.**

Ichigo smiled. Yeah, sure, like _that _was ever gonna happen.

**Where to?**

She might as well entertain the notion. It couldn't hurt.

**Barcelona. You'd love it there. :]**

Ichigo smiled. She'd often read about Barcelona.

**You speak Spanish?**

Obviously, he'd have to have some sort of language thing going on. Not everyone spoke Japanese.

**Course I do. We could go stay at Hotel 1898.**

Ichigo frowned. Hotel 1898? She'd read something about it somewhere, but couldn't remember what. Anywho, it didn't matter, she'd never get there at the rate things were going with her father. Especially if he proved Kisshu right through the date with Shirogane.

**What about Hotel Apsis Milleni?**

She drew a smiley face and passed the note back. She'd read about Apsis Milleni on the internet and thought it looked great. Very modern and comfortable. Kisshu pulled a face.

**I dunno. The rooms there are kinda small and plain. The Hotel Majestic is much better. It's got a spa. :]**

Ichigo smiled. Of course. She'd forgotten about that one.

***Sigh* Wish I could go.**

She passed it back and was suddenly hit with a huge pang of longing. She wanted to leave. Travel elsewhere.

**But you can. We can run there right now and get the Penthouse Suite. **

Ichigo smiled. Wouldn't that be something? She had enough to stay there for over two years. Not that she'd want to stay that long in any one hotel. She'd be off to Venice or Paris after a couple of weeks. The teacher announced they were to go do their lab, so Ichigo didn't reply. For the lab Ichigo and Kisshu were partnered with these random chess players. Ichigo was the only girl and used that to her advantage. The period passed without event and when the bell rang, they all walked out for lunch. When they arrived at their usual place, a small bouquet of red roses was sitting in Ichigo's place. Minto nudged Ichigo and winked. "Looks like he's back," Retasu giggled. Ichigo looked around suspiciously before picking up the flowers. "So, they from him?" Minto asked. Ichigo looked at the card. "Yup," she confirmed. The group sat down.

"Those are pretty nice flowers," Kisshu commented. "Yeah, he varies between roses and mixes generally including poppies of some sort," Ichigo replied. "So does that mean you like them?" Kisshu asked. "Sure. I mean, they're definitely pretty-" Ichigo started, but was interrupted by a box of chocolates appearing in front of her face. Written in gold letters on the red box were the words, "Go to the dance with me?" She looked up and back until she saw the face of a handsome teen boy. He was blonde and had blue eyes, a rarity in Japan. He smiled and the sunlight bounced off his golden locks. "Well?" He asked hopefully. "Maybe," Ichigo replied and began to turn back to her friends. "What about dinner to night?" he asked. Ah, opportunity knocks. Ichigo sensed that this would be a perfect experiment. "Sure," she replied. "I'll pick you up at six. We'll do dinner and a movie," he said. He left the chocolates with her, and as he walked away, all four heard a very loud cheer of glee.

Minto smiled deviously at Ichigo. "What are you planning Momomiya Ichigo?" Minto asked conspiratorially. "Oh, just a little experiment," Ichigo said with a wave of her hand, and then opened the box. "Chocolate anyone?" Ichigo asked, offering the spoils of dating to them. Minto declined, but Retasu and Kisshu took a chocolate. Kisshu raised an eyebrow at Ichigo and she winked back. He smiled and sat back. Ichigo knew he'd ask her about it on the way home from school, but whatever. Her life was her own.

Later that day, back in her room, Ichigo carefully picked out her outfit. She didn't want to encourage him too much, especially since she planned on her father wrecking the date. But she didn't want to look like a total slob either. It's not like she wanted to totally discourage him. . . . or did she? Hmm . . . Dinner and a movie. She chose a spaghetti strap top with a heart shaped top. It was pink with black lace. She picked out a matching black skirt and took her hair down out of the pigtails it had been up in. It would be cold, she knew. Ichigo pulled a long black coat lined with velvet from her closet. Ichigo glanced at the clock. Shirogane should be arriving anytime. She pulled on a pair of black slippers. She walked out as Kisshu was walking down the hall.

"Well, what do you think?" She asked, spinning in a circle.

"Wow, Ichigo you look great. And this is your outfit for experimentation? I can't wait to see what you'll dress like for a real date," He commented with a mischievous smile. The doorbell rang.

"Showtime," Kisshu said and walked down the stairs with her.

Ichigo's mother was already opening the door. When she saw Shirogane she looked at Ichigo. "Ichigo, who is this?" She asked. Before Ichigo could answer, Shirogane extended his hand. "I am Shirogane Ryou and my don't you look lovely tonight. Mr. Momomiya is a lucky man," Shirogane started. Mrs. Momomiya blushed and shook his hand. "I am taking your daughter out on a date tonight. We're going out to dinner and a movie," Shirogane continued. Mrs. Momomiya dropped his hand and shouted, "Suka-kun!!!" Mr. Momomiya came running from the dining room. "What is it, Kura-chan?" He asked. "This boy says he has a date with our little Ichigo," Mrs. Momomiya explained. Ichigo watched her father closely. Mr. Momomiya scrutinized the boy, taking in the rich car and expensive clothes and the flowers he had brought Ichigo. "Please excuse us for a moment," Mr. Momomiya said to Shirogane and pulled Ichigo into the kitchen.

"Ichigo, what did I tell you about dating?" Mr. Momomiya asked in a warning tone. Time to play her part in the experiment.

"But father, I _really _like this guy and he's been asking me out for so long," Ichigo complained.

"Regardless, I told you to tell me **before **you accepted any date-like invitations," Mr. Momomiya reprimanded her.

"I know . . . but I was afraid that you wouldn't let me," Ichigo said with her head down.

"I'll let it pass this one time because the Shiroganes are a rich and long standing family, but you must never go out with him again, do you understand?" Mr. Momomiya asked. Ichigo nodded submissively and walked out of the kitchen. At the threshold she paused.

"Thank you, father," she said over her shoulder before continuing to the front door. Ichigo took the flowers from Shirogane and put them in a vase standing alone in the entryway. "Let's go," Ichigo said pulling on her coat. Shirogane smiled. "Great. You look beautiful tonight," He complemented. Ichigo smiled in spite of herself. "So where are we going for dinner?" She asked. "It's a surprise," Shirogane said with a gleam in his eye. Ichigo smiled. "Oh really?" She asked. Ichigo climbed in through the open door and Shirogane followed. The chauffeur closed the door and began to drive.

"So I was thinking we could go out and see something cute, like Wall-E or Bolt, unless you wanna go see a chick flick or, if you want, we could go back to my house and watch something on my home entertainment system," Ryou offered. Why not? This was probably going to be her only date with him, and it definitely confirmed the fact that her dad didn't want her to date and meet other people.

"Okay, we can go back to your place after dinner," Ichigo replied.

"Great. What movie do you want to see?" Ryou asked.

"Do you have the Prestige?" Ichigo asked. Ryou raised his eyebrow in surprise.

"You like that movie?" He asked.

"Sure, it's a great movie, why wouldn't I?" Ichigo fired back.

"Well, it's horrible twisted in a bad way, especially the ending and my sisters hate it," Ryou explained.

"You have sisters?" Ichigo asked. Ryou blushed.

"Well, they're not exactly sisters. My mom's side of the family is kind of mixed up, so I've got these aunts who are about my age. They're living with me right now, but they're headed to America in a week. They seem like sisters 'cuz they've been here for about a year," Ryou explained. Ichigo nodded.

"I see. So will we be able to watch the Prestige?" Ichigo asked hopefully.

"Sure. We'll even have time to watch something else after," Ryou replied.

"What did you have in mind?" Ichigo asked.

"Have you ever seen the Illusionist?" Ryou asked.

"You mean with Edward Norton?" Ichigo asked. With a nod from Ryou, she continued.

"No, I haven't, but I'd like to," she replied. Ryou smiled. The car rolled to a stop. "We're here," Ryou announced with a sense of pride. He waited for the driver to open the door then got out and helped Ichigo out. "Oh my gosh. You got use reservations for the Itachi Jungle Café?!" Ichigo squealed. She and Ryou started chatting animatedly after that. A waiter seated them at a table for two near the garden maze. Ichigo, having given her coat to the doorman, took a seat. "Would you like to go in the maze after?" Ryou asked. "That'd be so awesome, you know Minto came here once and got so lost in the maze that her father had to send a helicopter to spot her from above so that they could guide the restaurant people to her. It was hours before she finally got out," Ichigo said. They laughed and Ryou told a story about how his sisters had followed this hot guy into the maze and then gotten lost. They ran into the restaurant manager while they were wandering, trying to get out, and he guided them to the exit. Dinner was less awkward and more fun that Ichigo would've thought a date with Shirogane would be. She was almost sorry she wouldn't be able to date him again.

. . . Almost.

When they finished dinner and after Ryou had paid the bill, they went into the maze. They wandered in and out and through the passages. Ichigo looked in wonder at the exotic flowers. Ryou plucked a thorn less Black Rose and tucked it in her hair. Ichigo smiled and took his hand. After a half hour, they ended up in front of many tiered waterfalls. Ichigo, who had been laughing and sharing stories with Ryou, stopped dead. For a full minute, Ichigo stood in silence watching the waterfall.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Ryou asked quietly.

"Yeah. I almost want to go swimming in it," Ichigo replied.

"I could arrange for that," Ryou said jokingly.

"Hey, I said 'almost'," Ichigo replied, nudging him. The music playing in the background suddenly changed. Ichigo instinctively began to tap her foot to the rhythm. Ryou took note of this and smiled.

"Wanna dance?" He asked.

"Here?!" Ichigo exclaimed.

"Sure. No one's watching and you like this song, right?" Ryou asked. Ichigo smiled. Now that was true. This was one of her favorite songs.

"Okay. We can dance," Ichigo agreed. Ryou place one hand on her waist and took her other hand and began to waltz her around the clearing with the waterfall. They twirled and whirled and he spun her around. When they finished they sat down on a bench and relaxed.

"You know, this is so beautiful, I wish we could stay here forever," Ichigo commented wistfully.

"Yeah, me too, but how would we eat, I bet barely anyone comes through here," Ryou said.

"We could hijack wandering maze goers," Ichigo replied playfully. Ryou laughed and stood up.

"C'mon, if we wanna watch a movie, we better get going," He said, holding out his hand to Ichigo. Ichigo took his hand and stood up. They made it to the exit and Ichigo collected her coat before entering the car with Ryou. The rest of the night was filled with fun and Ryou was such a great person that it actually made Ichigo a little sad to think that she'd never get to date him again. As they were being driven home, Ryou was strangely silent.

"Something wrong?" Ichigo asked, a little concerned. Ryou hesitated before beginning to speak.

"Well, it's just that I've been asking you out for so long, and you've always rejected me. And now you've finally said 'yes,' but your dad's gonna make this my first and last date with you," Ryou said mournfully. Ichigo smiled sadly.

"So you heard us?" Ichigo asked. Ryou nodded.

"Is it okay we're just friends?" Ryou asked after what seemed like an eternity of silence. Ichigo looked up at him and smiled.

"Sure, that'd be great," Ichigo replied. Ryou smiled and relaxed and they chatted until they reached Ichigo's house. Ryou walked her to the door, greeted Mr. Momomiya and thanked him for allowing Ichigo to go out with him this once. Then he left. Ichigo watched his car round the corner and then walked inside.

As she stripped and showered she didn't sing. She thought about what she had learned. One, her dad was definitely plotting something, probably an arranged marriage like Kisshu said. Two, she didn't want to believe that about her father. But, three, he had violently rejected Ryou; he had only allowed her to go out of politeness to the Shirogane family. Four, Ryou was a great person, although she didn't love him, she did want to be his friend. And, five, she was looking forward to her date with Kisshu, but, six, she couldn't tell her father. After all these thoughts had rolled through her head, she got out of the shower, confused, but feeling slightly better about the situation. As she stood there, wrapped in a towel in the steamy bathroom, she thought about earlier.

**You know, you would look great if you dyed your hair black.**

Yeah, and I could streak it red and purple while I'm at it.

**I'm serious. Now that you know your dad's up to something, you might as well start planning.**

Shut up.

**No, I will most certainly NOT.**

But I don't want to believe that about my dad.

**Maybe not, but you **know **what's going on. It doesn't hurt to be prepared.**

I know. *sigh* I know.

Kisshu, who was sitting on his bed, attempting to study, suddenly noticed that Ichigo wasn't singing. Usually she sang in the shower, and boy did she have pipes. He smiled to himself. She was the one. When the time was right, he'd whisk her away and take her to all the places she'd dreamed of, and more. The water stopped running and Kisshu knew she was out of the shower. She was probably thinking about her father's reaction to the date. Maybe he should tell her.

**You should you know.**

But she's going through some sort of emotional crisis right now.

**And so she needs to know she's loved.**

Yeah, but what if she doesn't love me back?

**Then isn't finding out better than never knowing?**

But—but

**Hey, she agreed to go with you tomorrow, right?**

Yes, but that doesn't prove anything.

**But she wouldn't have agreed if she didn't like you.**

But what if it's just some weird Japanese custom, you know how they are.

**She doesn't seem the type to be held back by customs as strange as that.**

Yeah, I suppose you're right. But if I tell her this early on, she might take it as a precursor to an abusive relationship.

**WTH?!**

Well, we just went through that segment in our health class . . .

**Excuses, excuses.**

It's true!!

**But if you don't tell her, someone else she likes might, and then where would you be? I mean, already she's got that Shirogane guy. How many more might she have up her sleeve?**

Shut up.

Kisshu rolled over on his belly and gave up all pretenses of studying. He should just go to sleep. On second thought, he should go say good night to Ichigo. Yes, now _that _was a good idea. Kisshu flopped out of bed and walked over to Ichigo's door. He knocked on it a couple times. "Just a minute!" came Ichigo's muffled voice. Kisshu heard drawers and doors slamming and things being pushed aside. Finally the door opened. Soft classical music was playing and Ichigo's schoolbooks lay open and scattered helter skelter. She was wearing a long flannel shirt and loose short-shorts.

"What's up?" Ichigo asked, leaning against the doorframe. Kisshu shrugged. "Nothin' much. Just sayin' good night," He replied. "oh. Okay. Hey c'mere, I wanna show you something," Ichigo said, pulling him in. She faced him toward the window and pointed to the moon. "See those two bright stars next to the moon?" Ichigo asked. Kisshu nodded. "That's Mars and Jupiter. They're slowly converging," Ichigo informed him. Kisshu smiled. He didn't often spend much time looking at the stars. "Cool, huh?" Ichigo commented. "Beautiful," Kisshu commented, looking down at Ichigo's pretty red head.

The stars twinkled and sparkled in the black abyss of the night sky, but Ichigo and Kisshu were not the only ones looking up at them. Across town and to the left a bit, Retasu was also looking up at the stars. Usually she wasn't up this late, but Minto was on the phone about homework. They'd finished the homework part and proceeded to talk about many things, which presently included Ichigo.

"What do you think Ichigo's doing, going out with Shirogane?" Minto asked.

"I'm not sure. When she was walking with Kisshu, she said she was experimenting," Retasu replied.

"Yeah, but experimenting with what? And how do you know that?" Minto asked suspiciously.

"Minto, they ride home with us every other day. Just because you were napping doesn't mean everyone else was," Retsau chided her friend.

"Point taken. So what kind of experiment could Ichigo possibly be performing?" Minto persisted.

"I don't know. And, quite frankly, right now I don't care. She'll tell us about it when the time is right," Retasu replied.

"I know. It's just that, well, what if she gets hurt doing all this 'experimenting'?" Minto worried.

"Ichigo's a big girl now, she can take care of herself," Retasu said firmly.

"Yeah, but she's so naive about the real world," Minto sighed.

"Hey, it's half past one. I gotta get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow, 'kay?" Retasu said.

"All right. Oh, and don't forget: Ichigo and Kisshu's date is tomorrow," Minto noted.

"Got it. See 'ya," Retasu said and hung up. She quickly showered and went to bed. Minto stayed up a while longer, bothered by Ichigo's recent actions, but she also eventually slept.


	7. Wandering

Well, it was finally time. Ichigo and Kisshu walked out the front doors, packed up with hundreds of other students who didn't have an eighth period. They confidently walked down to the Itachi Jungle Bakery. Ichigo was dressed casually, anything else would've looked suspicious to her parents. Kisshu paid for two buffet meals and they took their plates and headed for the buffet.

Retasu and Minto were in the café across the street, wearing hats and sunglasses and discreetly observing Kisshu and Ichigo.

"I don't think we should've told him her favorite restaurant," Retasu commented.

"And why not? It's helping him score points, isn't it?" Minto asked.

"Yeah, but maybe he would've taken her to someplace fantastic," Retasu replied wistfully.

"Yes, but we might not've been able to spy on them that way," Minto defended herself. "Besides, just look at her. This is one of her dream dates."

Retasu and Minto stared at Ichigo and Kisshu. Luckily, they were sitting near the window, so Retasu and Minto had a good view. They were eating and talking animatedly and, well, having fun.

"You know, Minto, he's the one. He's gonna whisk her away and take her on the adventure of her life," Retasu said with a hint of sadness. "And when he does, I'm gonna miss her a whole bunch."

"What makes you think he's gonna do that?" Minto asked.

"Well, she's looking at him like that, and he's looking at her in the same way. And, well, that's her one wish and he knows it. And he's a traveler, and, both of them have quite a bit of money," Retasu replied quietly. Minto sighed. They watched the couple in silence and when by the time Ichigo and Kisshu had finished eating, dark clouds were hovering overhead.

Ichigo pulled on her jacket and looked up at the sky as they exited the restaurant.

"Looks like rain," Kisshu commented.

"Yeah. Think it'll start before we get home?" Ichigo asked. They looked at each other and Kisshu shrugged. They started home at a brisk trot.

"You know, we could go to Italy," Kisshu said.

"Yeah, in my dreams," Ichigo replied almost glumly.

"Sure. We could go to Venice, Rome, Florence, Milan, and Turin," Kisshu baited her.

"And I suppose we'd also visit Naples, Verona, Bologna, Genoa and Palermo," Ichigo playfully responded.

"We'd stay in the best hotels and eat the best food and stay for weeks in each place," Kisshu replied. Ichigo sighed, her heart heavy with wanderlust.

A drop of rain landed on her nose. Ichigo blinked and looked up. "Hey Kisshu—" was all she managed to say before the downpour tried to soak them. They ran through the rain and took shelter under a small pagoda in the park. Ichigo stood looking at the rain.

"Think it'll last very long?" She asked. Kisshu shrugged, as though to say, 'How should I know?'

They were both silent for a few seconds, but it almost seemed like an eternity. Suddenly, Kisshu turned to Ichigo.

"Wanna dance?" He asked. Ichigo looked at him, wide-eyed.

"In this?" She asked.

"What, is Koneko-chan afraid of getting wet?" Kisshu teased and held out his hand. Ichigo glared at him defiantly.

"I am not afraid of a little rain," She said and took his hand. The rain had lightened up a little bit and was no long trying to soak them.

Kisshu grasped her hand and whirled her out into the rain. The couple whirled and twirled and Ichigo found out that Kisshu was a very good dancer. They danced and talked and laughed until their sides hurt and the rain was but a drizzle. They collapsed on a bench under a different pagoda.

Ichigo closed her eyes, sighed, and smiled. Kisshu looked over at her and pushed a stray strand of wet hair off of her face. Ichigo opened her eyes and looked at him. Then, quite suddenly, they were kissing each other. It was a soft kiss, not urgent or very passionate. Not the kind of kiss that would take you to bed. It was just a soft, lovely kiss in the rain. Their lips parted and Kisshu stroked her hair.

"Come with me," Kisshu whispered in her ear.

"Where will we go?" Ichigo asked quietly.

"Everywhere," Kisshu replied. Ichigo smiled happily and leaned into him and they sat there. They just sat, in each other's arms, quite comfortably until the rain stopped.

And when it did, they walked home, hand in hand. Feeling better about life in general. When they got back to Ichigo's house, it was almost 5pm. Ichigo's mother was out with friends and her father was on a business trip. Neither would be home until the next day. So Ichigo and Kisshu sat down on the couch with some food Ichigo heated up in the microwave. They both sat under a blanket and watched movies until they nodded off to sleep, leaning against each other and completely at peace.

The ringing telephone woke Ichigo up first. She picked up the phone, but no one was there. Then she heard a car drive up and knew that someone was home. She quickly woke Kisshu and by the time the door opened they were both sitting at the table, eating breakfast.

Mr. Momomiya entered. "Ichigo, we're all going to a celebratory banquet five days from now," he announced. "Well, all of us but Kisshu," He amended. "Kisshu is leaving tomorrow."

"Also, your mother and I will be going very early. A car will be by to pick you up around seven, all right, Ichigo?" her father stated more than asked. Ichigo nodded and her father went upstairs.

"I didn't know you were leaving so soon," Ichigo said.

"Yeah, me neither. I think your father's trying to get rid of me," Kisshu replied. Ichigo sighed. And, as they both sat there, thinking this over, Ichigo realized that she didn't want Kisshu to go. She wanted him to take her with him. She wanted him to sweep her off her feet and take her to Barcelona and Verona and all those other places they'd talked about.

Ichigo went up to her room and picked up the phone to find that somebody was already using it. It was Kisshu, and he was talking to Minto. Ichigo didn't feel like talking on the phone anymore or like eavesdropping, so she quietly hung up and flopped down on her bed. Kisshu spent a good portion of the morning on the phone with Minto. Ichigo didn't wonder what they were talking about.

That afternoon, about a half hour before sunset, Kisshu and Ichigo went for a walk. "I don't want you to leave," Ichigo said quietly, after they had been walking for a while.

"I don't want to go, but something has happened and I need to go to my sister," Kisshu replied.

"Will you come back?" Ichigo asked, looking up at him.

"Of course I will, Koneko-chan," he replied with a smile. "You think I would leave you here with that Shirogane boy after you?" he teased. Ichigo smiled.

"You don't have to worry about him. We're just friends now," she replied. They walked to the top of a grassy hill in the park in silence.

Kisshu flopped down on the grass and Ichigo followed. They both tucked their hands behind their heads and stared up at the clouds. They watched the colors change from white to orange, then to pinkish-red, and then to purple and, finally, they watched as the clouds seemed to disappear altogether in the nighttime sky.


	8. Willingly

Ichigo stood waiting for the limo to pick her up. She was wearing a beautiful dress. It was many pale colors and gave her the illusion of being a fairy princess of some sort. Ichigo rather thought that it was almost like a wedding gown. She wore no jewelry except a necklace. It was made out of rare pink pearls and had a heart shaped pendant carved from beautiful white shell. Ichigo felt a pang in her heart.

Kisshu had come to her right before leaving for the airport. He'd given her a hug and a quick peck on the cheek and, before her parents had called him down, he'd slipped her a brown paper package. "Call for me, and I'll come," he'd whispered to her before leaving.

She'd seen him off and when it was over, she'd gone upstairs and opened the package. It was in a coppery velvet box lined with satin. Inside had been the necklace and pendant.

Ichigo was shaken out of her reverie by the doorbell. She opened the door and followed the driver out. He helped her into the limo and shut the door behind her. It was dimly lit inside and it took her eyes a minute to adjust. When they did, she was shocked to discover a wall of black curtains halfway through the limo and a man. Very fat and oily, dressed in a tux and, oddly enough, one of her father's business associates.

"What— what are you doing in here?" Ichigo asked.

"I am your husband," he replied in a deep voice. Chills ran down Ichigo's back.

"What are you talking about?!" She cried.

"You father has arranged it all. In fact, right now, we're quite legally married," He said. He held up some legal looking documents. "See?" Ichigo didn't like the glint that had taken residence in his eyes. She searched for the handle on the door. She needed to get out of here, now.

"Don't bother reaching for the doors, they're all locked. And only I and driver know how to open them," He commented. "Now, if you're quite finished eyeing the doors, I have something else in mind for us." Ichigo looked up as his voice trailed off and immediately noticed that the black curtains had been pulled aside, revealing a bed made out of folded down seats and a mattress in the middle.

"Sir, I am not going to bed with you," Ichigo cried indignantly.

"Oh, but I think you are. You see, there was no banquet tonight," the man said with a malicious laugh. He reached for her. Ichigo dodged his attempt, but he reached quickly for her again. Ichigo, not expecting him to be that fast for his size, was too slow. He grabbed her arms and threw her on the bed. He roughly kissed her and Ichigo screamed. She scratched and clawed at him, but he grabbed her wrists and forced them down above her head. He ran his hand over her body and and roughly turned her over. As he undid the dress, Ichigo cried and screamed and kicked. He stopped pulling the dress down and turned her over.

"Out of curiosity, who is this 'Kisshu' you keep on calling out to? A boyfriend, perhaps?" He asked cruelly. Ichigo's eyes widened, she didn't know she's been calling for him. But she dearly wished he would come and rescue her. When she didn't answer, he hand-cuffed her hands to the bed and pulled up her skirt. Ichigo kicked and screamed again, managing to kick him off the bed.

The man swore and came at her again, this time ripping the dress off, leaving Ichigo in her lacey underwear. Just as her was about to come at her again, there was a thud on top of the car and a dent appeared in the ceiling. For a moment, Ichigo and the man stopped struggling, then the window burst. Shattered glass flew everywhere.

A man in black swiftly knocked out the bigger man and then came up to Ichigo. She stared at him defiantly.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" she asked. The man pulled off his cloak and covered her with it. "It's okay, Koneko-chan. It's me. Now where'd this cretin hide the key?" Kisshu asked. Ichigo was shocked and embarrassed, remembering that he'd seen her in her underwear. He face turned deep crimson red and she mumbled something about the key being in his pocket. Kisshu went through the pockets and found the key. He unlocked the hand-cuffs and Ichigo sat up, clutching the cloak to her chest and rubbing her wrist.

Kisshu picked up the dress. "Do you wanna put this back on?" He asked holding it up. "Not really, but seeing as how I have no other clothes . . ." Ichigo trailed off, feeling rather disgusted with the dress. A bag landed in her lap.

"That's why I was late. Minto stopped me and gave me these for you," Kisshu replied. Ichigo opened the bag and found a fresh change of clothes as well as a passport with Ichigo's face, but different hair.

"How did Minto know I was here?" Ichigo asked as she changed. Kisshu was facing the other way.

"She didn't. I ran into her on the way here," Kisshu replied.

"Well then, how did you know?" Ichigo asked. She'd finished changing and had come up behind Kisshu.

"I told you I'd come if you called," He replied, slipping his arms around her waist and embracing her. "You know who did this don't you?"

"Daddy. Daddy did it," she said quietly and began to cry a little. Kisshu comforted her.

"Take me with you," she whispered quietly. "Take me away from here. There is nothing left." Ichigo clutched the passport Minto had sent along.


End file.
